


How lucky I was that you found me

by Leikar



Category: Fire Emblem: Kakusei | Fire Emblem: Awakening
Genre: Multi, Now Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, So don't worry, Trans My Unit | Reflet | Robin, burns so fast they bang on the third chapter, i shortened the title because goddamn, i've writen +40.000 word so far and that's barely half of the story, it was so stupidly long, now it's much better, or sorry about it if that's what you wanted, pretty much the oposite of a slow burn, the smut is here, there will be smut in just one chapter tho, this started as a quick smut practice that spiraled out of control, too tired to think right now, will follow the events of the game but I won't focus too much on them
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-16
Updated: 2019-05-22
Packaged: 2019-06-28 10:39:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 35,159
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15705567
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Leikar/pseuds/Leikar
Summary: Perhaps losing his memory was just a chance for a fresh start.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Ooooooohhhh booooooooyyyyy. Here I go. This is the first multichapter fic I've managed to write in six years and I'm so excited about it! I really hope you like it, guys!!

That Chrom guy could say anything he wanted about Robin not being their prisioner. He was still being watched by Frederick and half-forced to go to a strange city a couple of days away. It didn't help to calm down his nerves knowing that another one of Chrom's Shepherds was with them. She had arrived during the battle against those humanoid monsters, and traveled with them since.

A self-proclaimed amnesiac with Plegian features and clothes, but unusually pale skin and  _feroxian_  accent was pretty much a walking anomaly. Not to mention his innate talent with tactics, magic and physical weapons. He didn't blame Frederick for not trusting him. He simply wished his axe was a little further from his hand.

Robin didn't understand why they had to go to the capital to sort out what kind of hidden hole he had crawled out exactly. But he went along, knowing escaping would be impossible and stupid.

At least they were giving him free food.

Ylisstol was a big city, bursting with activity and people everywhere Robin looked, especially in the market district. Some were haggling the prices of their vegetables while others anounced their goods in hopes they would attract interest. A couple of kids almost ran him over while playing, their apologies getting lost in the wind. Robin was sure he had accidentally kicked a chicken at least once. He also noticed the strange looks some people were giving him or, rather, his clothes.

He was about to ask Chrom to choose a less crowded path to wherever they were bringing him when a voice in the crowd yelled. The Exalt was coming. Everyone got closer to the houses and selling stands without hesitation to open a way for her and her pegasi guards . That, along the security that surrounded her, made something in Robin's brain click.

"She's your ruler, right?" He guessed.

"Indeed." Frederick answered "Her name is Lady Emmeryn. She's a symbol of peace for Ylisse."

"And she's the best big sister in the world!" Lissa happily yelled.

It took Robin a couple of seconds to process that information. She was _her_ sister? "But doesn't that mean you are…?"

"The prince and princess of the realm, yes." Frederick answered with a smile that made Robin very nervous. "How curious you didn't know that. You did know milord's name but not this."

"I'm amnesiac!" He defended himself.

Robin could feel he was getting flusetered already. He had been talking too casually with not one, but two members of royalty. He was glad they hadn't cared at all, otherwise a part of him was sure his head would have rolled already. Now thinking about escaping sounded like an even worse idea, if that was possible. Not to mention that Frederick was their retainer. The _prince's_  retainer. Robin was sure it had to be mandatory for him to be the strongest man in the realm. And the knight had been close to throw an axe to his face; only Chrom had stopped that.

Robin didn't know if he was the luckiest or unluckiest person in the world.

"Emm is returning to the palace." Chrom said then "Would you like to meet her?"

" _Do I have a choice, prince Chrom?_ " Robin barely managed to swallow a sarcastic answer his brain unhelpfully provided, and nodded. He was sure he had become a formal prisioner by then.

* * *

Lady Emmeryn was a gentle woman that spoke kindly but firmly. Robin tried to avoid being too close to her, both out of respect and because he wished to go unnoticed, while Chrom and Lissa talked to her. But his wishes got crushed fast, since he was the main reason why they were there in the first place.

"Robin fought bravely against the brigards, so I wanted him to become the Sheperd's tactician."

Chrom's voice caught his ears. Wait, what? He had thought the first part was a trivial comment to praise his abilities despite his lack of memory. Did that meant he couldn't leave after that meeting was over?

But if he did leave… Well, being left in the middle of nowhere with no memory of who he was or where he could go wasn't the most appealing idea. Accepting Chrom's proposition perharps wouldn't be that bad, after all. At least until he discovered a little bit more about himself.

"Forgive my interruption, Your Grace, but Robin's claims of his memory loss are just claims as far as we know. We can't rule out the posibility of him being a Plegian spy."

Oh, yeah. That.

"Frederick!" Chrom frowned, not happy with his input.

Robin shrugged and gave an apologetic smile when the royals stared at him. The knight was right after all, and he didn't have anything else to defend himself with.

"He fought against Plegian brigards to protect an Ylissean village. He risked his life for our people. That's enought for me." Chrom declared, sure of himself.

Emmeryn seemed to smiled at his words. "Well then, Robin. Chrom seems to trust you greatly, so I'll put my trust on you as well. Welcome to Ylisse."

"Thank you." Robin answered. "To be honest, I don't believe Plegian's are my friends."

"And why is that?" Frederick's words still sounded distrustful, but they were curious as well.

Robin bit his lower lip and stared at one of the columns. "After the fight against brigards and those monsters I… remembered something. One single thing."

"And yet, you didn't tell us inmediately." Frederick's comment earned an angry glance from Chrom. He stoically ignored it while staring at Robin.

"You didn't believe I was amnesiac. You still don't." The Plegian man replied. "And the only thing I remember anyway is… me being on a river while some Plegians were attacking a woman until she died."

"Brigards don't usually care about one's origins."

"I have the feeling the both of us were expecting that to happen on day or another."

"You were being pursued?" Lissa asked, worried.

Robin blinked and unconciously started scratching his neck, thinking. Was he? "I… Maybe? I don't remember…"

"If you were, you'll be safer with the Shepherds." Chrom assured him.

"If I was, they could also attack the Shepherds now that I'm here." Robin replied.

But at the same time, it was such an unexpected movement... To become part of another country's militia hand in hand with the prince. It could throw off his pursuers for a while, if he hadn't done that already before losing his memory. He hoped he had.

It really did look like becoming a tactician was the best course of action for the moment.

"Well, if despite this you'll accept me, I'll be glad to be of service." Robin accepted.

Chrom smiled at him when he heard that, and Robin felt like smiling back at him. Then Emmeryn said how she and Chrom had to go for a council and excused themselves. Lissa took the newly appointed tactician's hand to get him to know the rest of the Shepherds.

* * *

Robin didn't know what to think exactly of the group tasked with protecting the halidom. They were nice, sure – well, except the blonde noble girl with big curls, but Lissa had asked him to give her time. But most seemed quite… eccentric. Despite Chrom's confidence on his battle plans, he didn't remember doing anything like that before, and he wasn't sure of what to do with such a group. At least, if they had been so long without a tactician, they could fend for themselves while Robin sorted things out. He hoped they could.

Robin sighted and entered his new room. With the demilitarization of the halidom Lady Emmeryn had done once the previous war was over, more than half of the barracks were empty. The Shepherds had the privilege of not only getting their own private room, but also choosing where it was. Most of them would get it as close as possible from the canteen, to make sure they would be the first to eat and get the best portions. But Robin wanted quietness, so he chose one of the furthest instead. The only other Shepherd close to him was Miriel, living next door. The closest room in use was six doors away.

Robin's room was small, and probably only two soldiers would normally live in there. There was a single bed, a desk with an unlit candle, a bookcase and a chest for the clothes; and there was a small room with the toilet. Robin's only belongings were a sword, a magic tome and a knife. He thought it was strange for him to not have some kind of pouch with food and other necessities for travel. But he didn't remember anything beyond a couple of days, and there was nothing he could do about it.

Even after he had settled down, the room barely changed. It was almost as if anyone was still living there. He felt a little unsettled by it, as if that wasn't his place and he wasn't needed. As if he should just go and continue going wherever he was taveling before he lost his memory. As if nobody there would miss him.

He felt his stomach turn. Both the tome and the sword he carried with him showed signs use before he had been found by Chrom. Maybe he had to use them because of wherever he had been before… Maybe…

His darks thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. Robin jumped, startled, and went to open it. He found the prince's smiling face when he opened it.

"I wanted to check how you're doing. Did you finished putting everything away?"

"Oh, yeah." Robin opened the door wider to let him see the room. "It's not like I brought many things with me, anyway…"

"That just means you will have a lot of space to put the things you'll get with the new memories you'll make with us, right?"

Chrom's smile was like the sun. Not because it was bright or wide, but because it gave everyone who watched it a soft warmth and safeness. It was like laying down on a flower field on a day without clouds and taking a nap, knowing you would be safe. At least, that was how Robin felt when he saw it.

"Yeah."

Perhaps staying was truly the right choice.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooooohhhh booooooooyyyyy. Here I go. This is the first multichapter fic I've managed to write in six years and I'm so excited about it! I really hope you like it, guys!!


	2. Chapter 2

The four-day journey to Regna Ferox was mostly calm. The only incident they suffered was an encounter with a group of the newly named "risen", the same monsters that had attacked them on the way to Ylisstol. It was Robin's first real battle as a Shepherd, and the first time he would have to prove himself in front of his new companions. The thought made his stomach turn. The attack had been completely sudden and he had no idea were to start, nor time to think cautiously about it. And to make things worse, one of his companions had _lost his weapon_.

Robin breathed deeply and quickly checked the terrain in front of him. Most of those monsters were at the other side of the river, so the bridge could make a good chokepoint. He sent Frederick and Stahl there to stop them from advancing, Miriel to help the knights with magic and Lissa to heal when necessary. Then he sent the other Shepherds to deal with the rest of the risen on their side of the river.

The battle went well and no one got badly hurt. Robin blushed at the many compliments he got from the Shepherds that were fighting under his comand for the first time. Even Sumia thanked him, since he had had to think of a way to make sure she wouldn't be hurt while the others fought. Although Robin was sure he had seen an enemiy been suddenly defeated a few steps before reaching her…

"That was great, Robin! You're an amazing tactician!" Lissa happily chirped when they continued marching north.

"Thanks…" Robin smiled at the compliment, but he felt a little bit embarassed.

"I will admit I thought you could have ulterior motives when giving orders." Frederick added.

"You're the one with the best armor and the strongest horse!" Robin complained "If someone could have hold the risen off on that bridge, it was you. And I sent Lissa to heal you in case something went wrong!" He defended himself.

"And he sent Miriel and Stahl to support you. He clearly didn't want you to get hurt." Chrom added, feeling a little annoyed seeing his leuteniant was still sceptical.

But Robin let it go. He had the feeling that he would need more battles to prove himself, so he didn't argue. Well, if Frederick wanted more proof of his non alliance with Plegia or brigards, he would have them. And the tactician didn't mind that at least _one_ person wouldn't trust right away the random amnesiac guy found on the ground that was clearly not to be trusted right away.

* * *

Once the misunderstanding with the border guard had been cleared, Chrom agreed to help Khan Flavia to gain the shared throne of the Khans. It woud still take a week and half for the tournament to start, and they would have to travel another two days to get to the place where it would be celebrated. Chrom decided to send a letter telling his sister of the developments.

Robin decided to take that chance to watch the rest of the Shepherds training and making sure he could develop a good strategy for the tournament. The last thing he wanted was letting the prince that had given him a home die. Or any other of the Shepherds. He did hope that Khan Flavia's wish for them to survive the tournament was an exageration.

He spent the little free time he had wandering around the feroxian town. It was place built in hard stone, almost constantly covered in snow. The arena could be seen from anywhere in the city and the surrounding mountains. The second day after their arrival, after sliping for the third time on ice, buying a couple of warm meat bread rolls to eat and watching some children play on the frozen river, he realized the feeling that had been at the back of his mind the whole time was nostalgia. That place felt like home…

He was staring blankly at the people on the river below him when a sudden presence brought him back to reality. Khan Flavia smiled at him as greeting, and sit next to him.

"So Yilisse's tactician likes to wander around the town with the common folk."

"It's a really nice place. And I like the snow and the cold weather." It had been a recent revelation that had made him strangely happy.

It also made him… well, "remember something" wouldn't be the right way to say it, but he had felt some strong emotions that were definetly related to the place. Or, at least, with how that feroxian city was. Perhaps he hadn't been _there_ , but he had been on a similar place before.

Khan Flavia roared with laughter.

"That's more that what half of your Shepherds can say!"

Robin chuckled when he heard that.

"Yeah, I've seen they're not very used to the cold weather."

Flavia stared at him with with a glint of curiosity on her eyes. She seemed to be pondering something and wasn't sure whether to talk about it or not. She finally made up her mind, and opened her mouth again. But the words that came from it weren't in common Ylissean.

" _So you are a Plegian man with a feroxian accent._ "

Robin's brain didn't have trouble understanding the words it was hearing, despite being quite different from everything he had heard until that moment. Even in their first meeting, Khan Flavia had spoken Ylissean, probably wanting to make her guests feel more welcomed and willing to fight for her on the tournament.

" _So it seems._ " Robin answered in the same language.

It both surprised him and soothed him how easily the words came from his mouth, as if his brain had been patiently awating the moment he would use that language again. They seemed even easier to pronounce for him that Ylissean.

Khan Flavia looked surprised at the answer, despite having been the one who had started the conversation in another language.

" _I was told about your amnesia. Do you remember anything about this place? Or another Regna Ferox town you could have been?_ "

Robin scratched his neck and looked away. The children down the bridge seemed to be racing and one of then had fallen and was slipping away. Two other kids tripped on him and fell as well.

" _No._ " The tactician finally answered. " _I don't remember anything specific, but I do have the feeling I've lived in a place like this for a long time, with my mother. Maybe that's why I have this accent._ "

" _The strange thing is that you don't have an ounce of Plegian accent. As if you've never lived there._ "

Robin just sighted and kept staring at the children playing. They had gotten tired of the race and were making snowmen at the banks of the river.

He didn't have an answer to that.

"Well, sorry, it's not like I came here to interrogate you." Flavia apologized, feeling she had gone too far.

Robin shrugged. "It's fine. I would be curious if I were you, too. I just don't really have many answers."

"It's a shame Chrom found you first. I you had been wandering closer to our capital, I could have made you our tactician instead." She winked. Robin laughed. "Dinner will be ready in an hour on the canteen in the arena. Don't be late or you won't be able to eat!" She got up. "See you there, master tactician."

"I'll keep it in mind." Robin smiled.

He got up too and followed her. Snow was great, but a warm meal sounded even better. 

* * *

The cries of the audience were deafening and could be heard far away from the battlefield. Robin had to resist the urge to groan when he saw it. It was a completely flat field, with no high terrain they could take advantage of. He had already expected that, of course; but he had hoped for some obstacle that would help him plan. That Marth was strong and skilled; and fighting head on would be hard.

Robin knew something was wrong when he saw Chrom froze next to him when he saw Marth. The tactician followed the direction of his gaze and focused on the sword Marth had. It looked like the Falchion. In fact, it was _exactly_ like the Falchion. As far as Robin had been told, that was impossible; and Chrom's reaction confirmed it.

Chrom running straight to Marth the moment the battle started and ignoring the plan confirmed it further. Robin did quick mental changes and barked orders to the rest of the Shepherds. He run off with Lissa to get to Chrom and give him support.

Watching Chrom and Marth fight was like watching Chrom fight with a mirror. The same moves, the same angles; but directed at himself. Despite Chrom's ability, it was obvious that he wasn't used to fight against someone that fought so similarly to him, and it was unclear whether he would be able to win. Robin intervened, throwing a fireball that surprised Marth and helped Chrom knock his sword from his hands.

The battle was over a little after that. The audience roared, celebrating the new champions and their new Khan. Despite Chrom's attempts to talk with Marth, when the mediator aproached Chrom to declare the Shepherds winners, the young man managed to slip in the shadows, unnoticed.

* * *

The crecent moon hanged in the sky, with a few stars and many dark clouds joining it in the darkness of the night. Chrom was pacing quickly around the wall of the arena, crushing the snow with his boots.

Robin had had a bad feeling when he saw his commander's expression after the fight, and instead of going to his temporary room in the building, he had gone to the upper part of the coliseum. His hunch had been right, but still didn't know what to do. Chrom looked furious or, at least, unsettled and very nervous. Robin had heard him yell in anger before, but Chrom was so clearly disturbed the tactician wasn't sure how he would react if he tried to aproach him.

Still, it was obvious that he had to do something, if only to convince him to go to his room and stop trying to freeze himself walking outside in the coldest hours of the night. Robin breathed deeply and aproached him, trying to be loud to anounce his presence. Chrom stopped walking when he heard that and looked over his shoulder. He frowned when he sae Robin getting closer and started walking again. Robin sighted.

"Chrom, wait, please!" He ended up yelling, hoping Chrom would stop again.

He did, but his expression showed the tactician wasn't a welcomed distraction.

"What?" He abruptly said once Robin reached him. The Plegian man flinched at the voice and looked away, but still talked as firmly as he could.

"It's late and you should go to sleep. We leave in a couple of days."

"What we should be doing is looking for that "Marth", not wasting our time!"

"He left right after the battle." Robin tried to reason with him. "He could be anywhere and-"

"That's why we should be after him! The more time we waste here, the less likely we are to find him! We have to ask him where did he get that sword and how-"

"Chrom!" Robin yelled.

It was so sudden the prince felt silent and stared at him, surprised. Robin had closed his eyes and seemed to be trying to choose the right words. He slowly opened his eyes and aproached the nervous commander.

"Chrom." The tactician started again. He softly grabbed one of his hands and stared at him with a calm expression. "Breath. I know. This is weird, beyond weird. Completely unexpected and possibly dangerous; and we need answers. But we just fought a very hard battle and the Shepherds need to rest. And so do you. "Chrom tried to reply, but Robin talked faster. "We came to Regna Ferox for a specific reason: to get help to fight the brigards Plegia sends. And we did it. Now we have to inform your sister. Or I am wrong?"

Chrom stared at him and then sighted. It was true.

"Also, think about it. Both times we saw Marth he came to us. I doubt this will be the last time we'll see him."

The first time, he fell from the sky and went directly to protect Lissa from the risen. And then he had defeated Basilio's champion in a situation that definitely didn't seem a coincidence. Marth had bested Lon'qu and gotten his position as Basilio's champion. Robin was sure he had done it specifically to see them.

Chrom finally seemed to relax a little.

"You're right. I haven't even written Emm a letter yet."

Robin smiled when he saw him relax. He also realized he was still holding his hand. Gods, what was he doing?! He tried to let it go as smoothly as possible, but Chrom didn't notice it and kept holding it. Robin could feel his face getting warmer and was glad the night was that dark. He tried hard to not focus on their hands.

"Well, then I suggest you go to sleep and write that letter first thing in the morning so you can send it. Agreed?" Robin was proud that his voice didn't tremble a single time while saying that.

"Agreed." Chrom accepted, nodding.

They walked together to the door leading inside and then Chrom let go of Robin's hand. They went each to their room.

Robin didn't dare to look at himself in the mirror before going to sleep. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It always felt odd to me that Chrom barely reacted when seeing Falchion 2.0. beyond the battle at the arena.
> 
> It's not as if it wasn't unique, only usable by chosen ones with the right blood who happen to be royals, and one of his country's royal treasures. 
> 
> :/


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the promised smut! It's the first and last of the fic. It's also the first one I've writen in 5 years, so... uh... I hope you like it. 
> 
> There's somewhat important info, but I'll make a summary at the end notes for those who don't want to read this. I understand if you'd rather skip the smut.

The news about the help Regna Ferox would offer was recieved with joy in the Ylissean castle. Things got quieter in the border with Plegia, so the Shepherds could focus on guarding the countryside. The brigards may had lessened their numbers, but the risen had not. The Shepherds had to fight against them often to mantain the roads safe. There was a battle almost always they went somewhere.

The strategy then had been rather simple and straightforward: to charge against the risen while taking cover in the forest. There were no archers nearby, so Sumia was in charge of harassing the monsters to make sure they wouldn't take advantage of the woods as well. But Robin didn't predict reinforcements would come so fast from the nearby mountains.

They weren't many, but they were strong and quick. They arrived at the valley before he had time to think of something against them, and threatened to overwhelm the Shepherds. He yelled at Virion to get on Sumia's pegasus and shoot them from above, and for the mages to get on someone's horse and run around in circles, throwing magic at them. It was a simple distraction, but it worked well enough the Shepherds could regroup and reorganize.

Robin was so focused of checking that everything was going well he didn't realize he wasn't the only one hidden in among the trees. Chrom, a few trees away from him, saw the assasin risen draw his sword and yelled a warning, but Robin reacted to slow and the blade slashed the flesh on his chest, through his left shoulder and arm. The tactician groaned before the pain and shock made him faint. Chrom ran towards the risen and ended him with a precise strike to the head.

Chrom kneeled next to the unconcious man. There was a lot of blood turning red his cloak and white shirt, and the prince could feel himself starting to panic. He suddenly heard the hoofs of a horse aproaching, and he turned around ready to defend Robin from more monsters. But it was just Frederick, bringing Lissa on his mare so she could check on him as fast as possible. They must have seen what had happened as well.

His sister hopped down the horse and aproached fast the unconcious man. She used her staff inmediately to let the wound heal faster and stop the blood loss. Then she asked the other two men to get him onto the horse so they could bring him to the base and treat him. Frederick promised Chrom to be back as soon as possible, and he and Lissa left for the feroxian wall that could be seen in the distance. Chrom was left alone, covered by the woods. He wanted nothing more than go with them and make sure that the tactician was fine, but the Shepards needed their leader in battle, and that one hadn't finished yet.

* * *

Once the agreements with Khan Flavia had been made after the tournament that won her the shared throne, she had laughed and insisted that they could use any of the forts along the wall that marked the border as a temporal base for whatever they needed. The feroxian in charge of the wall were more than happy to recieve them, since that meant more news from beyond the border, a chance of commerce (the Ylisseans didn't like to abuse their hosts and usually brought more supplies than needed) and extra help in case problems arouse.

Lissa acted fast, bringing the unconcious tactician to his room and locking the door after her. She used a vulnerary and a poultice, making sure the area started to heal. She sighted after half an hour, once it was clear that Robin was out of danger, if still hurt. She bandaged the arm and shoulder carefully and left the room to let him rest, leaving the robe on one of the chairs with the bandages he usually wore on his chest.

* * *

The room was covered in shadows when Robin woke up. Thanks to the dim light of the small fire that remained, he realized he was on his temporary room in the base at the wall. A glance at the closest window told him it was night, since only the light of the stars could be seen through them. Another glance at the room made him realize he wasn't alone.

Chrom’s head was resting on the bed, next to the tacticians chest. His face was hidden by the sheets, his dark blue hair looking almost black in the darkness. His chest was rising slowly, indicating he was asleep. He had grabbed one of Robins hands.

Robin noticed the Falchion and the shoulder pad were gone, but a quick glance at the oposite wall let him find them at the table next to it. Robin frowned. How long had he been there, asleep?

The tactician sat up slowly, checking if the wound hurt. He just felt a slight discomfort when pressing the arm against the bed in an attempt to check how much weight it could stand. It was almost completely healed.

He shook Chrom softly and wishpered his name, trying to wake him up. That position couldn't be comfortable. The prince groaned, sleepy, and tried to hid his face against the bed even better to avoid waking up. Then he suddenly sat up and looked worried around him. Robin jolted, not expecting the sudden change on him, and even less that the prince would look at him wide eyed with a mask of worry on his face. Chrom grabed his arms as if wanting to make sure he was there, and that wasn't an illusion or a dream.

“Chrom, I'm fine. It doesn't even hurt.” The tactician tried to reassure him, guessing he was worried about him.

Chrom let go a shaking breath he hadn't realized he was holding, and freed Robin's arms. “You were unconscious for a day and half. There was a lot of blood...”

Robin bit his cheek, feling guilty for worrying him so much, even if it wasn't actually his fault. The assasin had been so silent he hadn't heard anything until Chrom yelled.

The he noticed the tired look on Chrom's face, and some dark marks under his eyes that seem suspiciously like bags, how his hair was messy and dishevelled.

“You should go to sleep.” Robin whispered, staring at him with worry, getting a bit closer so he could hear better.

He didn't want to break the calm atmosphere that had settled under the warmth of the small fire. Chrom frowned a little, still somewhat worried about Robin's state, and not wanting to leave yet. Robin chuckled softly at his reaction, and felt the sudden impulse of stroking his cheeks in an attempt to comfort him. He didn't.

When he was going to move his arm, he realized it was resting on Chroms shoulder, despite him not remembering why or when he had put it there. In an instant he became extremely aware of the fact that one of Chrom's arms was around his waist while the other one was still grabbing his hand. He was so close to his face he could see his pupils despite the darkness. Dilated. Alert.

The air in the room changed within a second, full of static. One wrong move, and everything would explode. Robin was barely conscious of his own heart hammering against chest, unable to look anywhere that weren’t those dark eyes.

Chrom kissed him first.

He pressed his lips softly but firmly against Robin’s. The tactician kissed the prince back, having trouble believing what was happening. Chrom was a great leader, kind, and so stupidly handsome he had fallen for him faster than he had realized. It was embarrassing for the tactician to admit that he had thought of the blue haired man on solitary nights more than once, yelling his name onto the pillow. But he also remembered others where he walked around camp and heard his own name being softly whispered from Chrom’s tent, and how he was always a bit bashful the next morning. It looked like Robin wasn't the only one having fantasies about his best friend.

Robin slid his tongue inside Chroms mouth, firmly grabbing his face. The prince hugged his waist and pulled closer, and the tactician noticed how hard Chrom was already.

Chrom slid his hands under his white shirt and softly explored his body. If he was surprised when he fiscovered the tactician had breasts, he didn't show it. Robin wondered for a second if he hadn't hid himself has well as he thought, but the friction againts his nipples proved to be more important at the moment. He did the same to Chrom, softly touching his muscular torso, while also pressing his crotch agains the prince’s. Robin smiled when that earned him a gasp and a moan. The tactician got rid of both of their shirts and hugged Chrom, pressing again against his crotch. Chrom groaned in pleasure, but to Robins surprise he didn't do much more than stroking his back.

“Fine?” He asked, a bit worried.

“Yes.” Chrom answered. His voice was rasp, full of desire, but also a bit timid. Something in Robins head clicked. Maybe...

He started kissing Chroms neck, and the prince exhaled a shaking breath of pleasure. Robin kept going down while Chrom started panting softly. Then the tactician slowly pushed him until onto the bed until he was lying on his back and Robin siting on him. Chrom didn't try to resist in any way, closing his eyes and letting his arms fall at each side of his head. Robin stroke his chest again, watching his reaction with curiosity.

So the commander liked taking a break on leading duties while he was in bed, huh? Fine by the tactician.

He stroke Chrom's member thought the fabric, softly at first but more firmly as the prince showed a very positive reaction, moaning and squirming against his touch. He got harder as well. The tactician took out his pants and grabbed him firmly, softly stroking the tip with his thumb. The noises coming from Chrom's throat were wonderful.

“Please...” The prince begged between moans, eyes shut hard. His body was too warm and already covered in sweat.

“Yes?”

“Please...” He insisted, eloquently.

Robin had to swallow a giggle. Such a submissive Chrom was nothing like he had imagined, but it had been so unexpected he found it really funny. He didn't want to laugh at him, however, knowing the prince wouldn't apreciate someone making fun of his preferences. It was rude.

“Chrom, I can't know what you want me to do unless you speak” That wasn't going to stop him from teasing him, though.

Chrom groaned, frustrated, and shoved his hip upwards to make it clear.

“You should have said it!” The tactician had to bit his lip to hold a laughter when Chrom glared at him, his face so red Robin wondered how he hadn't suffered a stroke already “But it’s not fair if you’re the only one having fun...”

Robin stroke Chroms cheek with a smile. Then he got rid of his own pants. They were wetter than he had expected.

Robin got his crotch closer to Chroms face.

“Show me what you can do with that tongue.” He ordered.

He hadn't planned to be so forceful, but Chrom simply closed his eyes and complied, sticking out his tongue and running though his labia as if it was ambrossia. Robin grabbed the bed headboard and swallowed hard. Chrom being so submissive was such a fucking turn on the tactician was having trouble controlling himself. And that tongue between his tights clearly knew what it was doing, and it was doing it amazingly. Robin briefly wondered how many times he had gone to a brothel, and if the nature of the prince made him the gossip of the place for a while.

Robin got up suddenly, realizing he was closer than he thought. But he didn't want to come yet, not like that. He kissed Chrom on his mouth, grabbing his hair and forcefully sliding his tongue onto his mouth, his desire slowly taking control when the prince reacted as enthusiasticaly as him.

“Chrom.” Robin groaned, his voice wonderfully deep with desire “Chrom, Chrom, do you want me to fuck you, Chrom? Do you want me to fuck you senseless, Chrom?”

“Yes!” The prince moaned almost instantly, his member twitching in anticipation.

Robin smiled against his skin, and softly kissed him on his lips. Then he moved away from Chroms head and carefully grabbed the hard member.

Chrom had to press firmly his lips and grabed the sheets to avoid yelling when he found himself sorrounded by a warm wetness that was so _easy_ to slide in.

“You're so fucking perfect.” He heard Robin's breathless remark right before he began to move slowly up and down and the prince's thoughts scattered in the pleasure.

Robin tried to go slow at first, in case one of them wasn't comfortable; but Chroms hips moving up at the perfect time combined with his own eagerness showed him that both of them wanted more, and fast. They were panting and gasping for air in a matter of minutes, moaning each others names as if they were praying, Robin practically impaling himself over an over on Chroms cock, moving on a frenzy thanks to the pleasure of the fast friction between their bodies.

Robin looked at Chroms body under him. His muscular torso was covered in sweat and there was tension on his arms from grabbing the sheets hard while the tactician kept riding him. His face was comtorted in pleasure, eyes closed and lips opened, breathing fast. He was hot, hot, so hot, so gentle, so kind, so perfect Robin couldn't help but wonder what had he done to deserve him, to deserve that moment. He was sure that he’d do anything to get him into such desperate yet pleased state again. He was sure he wasn't thinking properly anymore, either.

Chrom got suddenly tense and gasped hard. Robin instinctively threw himself on him and covered his mouth with his hands. Chroms yells was muffled while he shot his orgasm inside the tactician. Robin had more trouble masking his moan. He had been hurt and people probably knew Chrom was taking care of him, so if someone heard them yelling, they could get unwanted guests. That and he was fairly sure the door _wasn't_ locked.

Robin felt Chrom move under him, still breathing hard but starting to recover. Robin swallowed.

“Chrom...” He panted “I... still...”

He gritted his teeth. Chroms dick was still inside of him and everything was hot and thinking was really hard. But the prince seemed to understand despite his clouded state, and moved a hand to start strocking Robin's clit.

He shivered at the contact and realized he was closer than he had thought, clawing his nails at the prince torso and yelling agains the pillow in minutes. He slumped, exhausted, on his body, gasping for air.

The tactician didn't seem uncomfortable, so Chrom waited a little while hugging him and leaning his face against the white hair. Then he slid a hand towards Robin's stomach and raised his body a little. Chrom's member slid out easily, earning him a soft groan from the tactician in slight protest. The prince stroked softly the white hair, still hugging the tactician, eyes closed. He didn't want the moment to end, to go back to his normal life while pretending nothing had happened or worse, starting to act uncomfortable around each other.

“Chrom.” Robins soft whisper snapped him back to reality. The tactician was staring at him, but he also looked relaxed. The most relaxed he had ever seeing him, in fact.

Once Robin realized he had Chom's attention, he smiled warmly at him, got closer to his face, and kissed him.

Chrom didn't know if that kiss lasted seconds or hours; but he knew Robin was pouring all his feelings onto it, and that he was answering him equally. It would be fine. Everything was fine.

He fell asleep with his arms around the nice weight on his chest and feeling soft kisses on his neck.

* * *

Robin woke up due to the light that entered the room. He complained with a groan, despite knowing the sun wouldn't stop rising because of him. He tried to hid his face from the light by sinking it into the pillow, only to discover said pillow it was made of flesh and had the curious shape of someone's neck and shoulder. It also breathed.

Robin raised his head with a small frown of confusion. Chrom was there, naked and sleeping like a log. Wait, what?

Oh, right. He remembered. Last night Robin had ridden him like it was the end of the world.

Wait, correction. Last night, Chrom had practicaly begged Robin to ride him like it was the end of the world.

It had been amazing.

The tactician would have closed his eyes and rested his head against the sleeping prince again, but he had the nagging feeling he was forgetting something. Something important.

 He tried to get up, but Chrom's unconscious body reacted by hugging him tighter, nuzzling against his hair and mumbling something that sounded suspiciously like “five more minutes”.

 Robin sighted and shook Chrom a little.

 “Chrom, wake up, come on.”

 The tactician saw the bandages on his shoulder with the corner of his eye. He had been hurt by a risen and that was why Chrom had been on the room with him, he remembered then. And given his body's... secret, Lissa was the only one that took care of him when he got hurt. And to make sure no one was around when checking on him, she always came to see him first thing in the morning.

 Robin's eyes got wide and he started shaking Chrom more vigorously.

 “Chrom, wake up! Wake up!!”

 The prince did, looking everywhere for danger, disoriented at the urgency of the voice he was hearing up but seeing no apparent threat.

 The door of the room opened loudly and they heard a yawn.

 “Morning, Robin.” Lissa said in a sleepy tone “How are you feel—?”

 Her voice dropped when she saw her brother entangled in bed with her patient, barely covered by the bedsheets until the waist, except for one of his legs. Every unhidden bodypart was suspiciously devoid of clothing.

 Robin was glad he had his back facing the door and didn't have to see Lissa's expression because Chrom's face was acquiring a strong shade of red that was, frankly, amazing.

“Chrom, he's... hurt!!” Lissa yelled the first thing she could think of.

“OUT!” He brother roared, dying of embarrassment.

“Half an hour, please!” Robin said, still without facing her “I need a bath.”

 “I don't want to know!” The door closed and everything went quiet.

 Robin sighted and got up. He still was quite embarassed, but the rest of the Shepherds would get up soon. The longer they took, the more suspicious everything would be. He got to Chrom's side and got him up, guiding him to the bathroom while grabbing his hand.

 “Come on, Chrom. Let's take a bath.”

 “I can't believe this happened!” He replied, still mortified.

 "Yeah, we can agree on that.”

The wooden bathtub was already full of cold water, and no doubt Lissa had had something to do with it. She had probably asked to fill it when she had finished healing him after arriving at the wall. Robin made sure the water was clean, and he heated it with magic before entering himself.

 “Gods! Do you scald youself everytime you bath?!” Chrom groaned when he got in the water.

 The tactician looked at the water and then at his not-so-comfortable companion.

 “Yes?”

 “This can’t be healthy!”

 “I hate cold water! And it's relaxing! If I bath at night I usually make it even hotter!”

 Chrom looked at him horrified. Robin rolled his eyes and threw him a soap bar.

 “Come on, breakfast is waiting. And Lissa is, too.”

 Chrom got red of embarrassement again, but he started cleaning himself without saying anything.

* * *

Lissa examined the wound with critical eyes. There was a red mark next to Robin's neck that went though his shoulder until the base of his arm. Despite having been a deep cut, it had almost healed in a couple of days. It probably woudn't even scar.

“It's almost gone already.” It was Lissa's conclussion. Then she looked at him, puzzled “You heal quite fast.”

Robin shrugged and dressed again. But his mind reminded him of one time, when he was a child, that he had gotten many wounds with other children while playing, and he had been the first one to recover. They had been jealous of him, but they also had admired him. When he had told it to his mother, she had smiled softly. But her eyes showed a strange sadness and fear he couldn't place. They moved to another village the next day.

The awkward silence in the room brought Robin back to the present. Lissa didn't have anything else to say. Or she did, but didn't know how to. Chrom, who had stayed there because he didn't  know what else to do, talked first.

“You could have knocked.” He complained.

“I'm sorry!” His sister apologized for the fourth time “How was I supposed to know?!”

“You weren't.” Robin admited. _Nor did we until until we were already half naked_.

 “Exactly!” She complained. Robin felt a bit bad for her. She was  more embarrassed than angry or anything.

 Lissa got up and walked to the door “I'll leave now. Don't take too long.” She advised them.

 “Don't tell anyone!” Chrom's voice was almost begging.

 “I know, don't worry.” She assured him, and left.

 Robin got up and streched. “Let's go. I'm quite hungry”

 “Maybe we should go separated.” Chrom suggested, not wanting to deal with jokes about arriving late and at the same time as Robin that would be spot on. Robin humed in agreement.

Chrom was about to ask who should go first when Robin slid an arm around his waist and got their faces close. The prince was half a head taller than him, so the tactician's lips were at the perfect height to brush against his neck. Chrom could feel Robin's gloved thumb sliding against his throat and his own heart hammering against his chest.

“Don't worry,” The shorter man purred, sending shivers though Chrom's back “I'll eat you properly next time.”

 The sudden sound of the door closing snaped Chrom back to reality, only to realize he was already alone in the room.

 Chrom sighted. It was going to be a long day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, the importat parts: Chrom discoveres Robin is trans, but doesn't care. Lissa is Robin's personal healer to keep it a secret. The next morning she also discovered by accident they had banged. Woops.
> 
> Also, fun fact! This is actually the first thing I wrote for the fic! 
> 
> And sub!Chrom. Yup.


	4. Chapter 4

Robin didn't like the desert.

It was hard to walk on the sand, and the horses and the convoys were even slower. The merciless sun was shining upon them, and there wasn't a single cloud that could provide them some shadow and relief. Wasting one wind tome on providing some fresh air for the troops was becomeing increasingly tempting.

Emmeryn's execution was only two weeks away, and it was taking them far longer than Robin had planed to get there. He hadn't dare to send pegasus for faster scouting, fearing archers would take advantage of the clear sky and would shoot them easily. Slow reports from the ground were the only thing they had.

No, Robin definitely didn't like the desert.

A couple of Feroxian scouts arrived and Robin joined Frederick and Chrom to hear the report. There was a group of people not far from where they were. An armed group of people. It wasn't good news, but they were the first obstacle they had found in enemy territory since they crossed the border to Plegia. Something was going on but they didn't know what, and their nerves were starting to get to them. At least that was some change from the uncertainity they had been building up.

The Shepherds got ready to battle and Robin planned a simple strategy that prioritized those with good movement on the sand so they could serve as a distraction for the enemies while the rest advanced through the easiest paths they could find.

A little further, they saw a village and gigant fragments of vertebrae scatered on the sand. The smallest bones were as big as a horse. Robin felt on edge looking at them. It was eerie. What kind of monster was big enough to leave bones that size?

They got closer to the potential bandits and Robin quickly forgot the bones to stare at the leader of the group, as well as those that were close to him. They looked mostly like other black mages Robin had found on their missions along Ylisse, but their clothes had several eye-like shapes on the capes; and there were always six.

_The crunch of the snow was fast and frantic. His mother was grabbing his hand while they run to try to keep up with his speed, but the steps that followed them were getting closer. She was already tired, and he didn't have a lot of energy left either. The wistle of an arrow was heard close and the piece of wood got stuck on a close trunk. Robin clenched his teeth and looked around, desperate. There was nothing but trees, snow and a furious river within more than a day of travel; and even if they found a village, it was unlikely they would provide them refugee from their pursuers. People so far up north had enought difficulties surviving as it was; they didn't like unncessary trouble._

_His mother yelled and fell to the ground. Robin stopped running and crouched next to her. An arrow was standing out from her leg. She wouldn't be able to run. Robin helped her get up, listening to the steps that were coming closer. His heart was hammering in his chest and he franticaly tried to think of what to do. If he carried her on his back, they wouldn't be fast enough to flee. But he couldn't abandoned her, she was the only person he had ever had in his life! She stared at him, with fear and despair; the same expression he was probably having at the moment._

_The pursuers got so close they could hear the metal on their clothes clinking. His mother's eyes changed, and her dark skinned face suddenly became full with determination. She grabbed his hand tightly for a second and kissed Robin's forehead through the cloth of her scarf. She pushed him into the river before he coud react._

_The freezing water clawed at his body, the temperature change being so sudden he didn't even manage to yell in surprise, petrified by the shock instead. The furious water had dragged him several yards when the pursuers, all of them wearing purple capes with eye-shaped details,  got to her mother and stabbed her mercilessly. Her yells of pain were the last thing Robin heard before the river turned and left him invisible to his pursuers, and the coldness of the water stole him his consciousnes._

They were the people that had been following his whole life and ultimately ended his mother's life. They were Grimleal.

The shock of the memory that returned to his brain made his legs tremble and left him breathless. He stared down at the sand, trying to hold himself together. But his hands were clearly shaking and he could feel tears forming on his eyes. He was starting to pant as wave of hot fury threatened to crash over him, stealing him of any reason and leaving only anger and bloodthirst; an excuse for revenge.

Those bastards had killed her! Killed the only person he had ever had! Killed her, killed her killed her! And they would pay!

He suddenly felt Chrom's hand strongly grabbing his arm and saw his serious and concerned face when he looked up, startled.

"What's wrong?" He muttered, not wanting to alert the rest of the army.

So much for trying to hide how upset he was. He breathed slowly, trying to clear his mind. They were in Plegia to save Emmeryn from being executed by a madman. He couldn't afford to lose it there; the Shepherds needed him. Chrom needed him.

"I remembered something…" Robin answered, not without effort. "Something… bad. But I'll be fine… we have work."

 _Focus. Focus. Focus! You have to save Emmeryn._ He tried to ignore what he had remebered. It wasn't the right time to dwell on that.

Chrom was going to protest, but before he could, the tactian straightened up and started barking orders at the rest of the Shepherds, telling them to follow the plan they had revised with a couple of adjustments.

They defeated the Grimleal and crossed that part of the desert quite fast, particularly thanks to the help of the mercenary and the dragon girl that appeared out of nowhere and decided to join them, one for the money and the other one because she had nowhere else to go. Robin didn't complain about letting a dragon join their ranks. Her strengh was more than welcomed.

Chrom and him got further than the rest of the army and took on the leader. The dark mage wasn't happy to see the purple clothing Robin was wearing, and started to shout the moment he got closer.

" _You, Ylissean dog! How dare you wearing the clothes reseved for the High Hierophant of our Lord Grima?! I will not tolerate such a heresy! Die!!_ "

Robin barely had time to blink before another memory assaulted him. He knew the High Hierophant of the Grimleals. He had found him, once…

_The chase had slowed down after his mother's death, but it hadn't stopped. Another year of hiding and running through the frozen lands of Regna Ferox had passed and Robin was tired and bitter about his life. About not having a moment of rest. About having what seemed an entire country on his back for no known reason. About having lost everything he had._

_He was done. And he was angry._

_He had discovered that in that ocasion the High Hierophant himself, the strongest Grimleal of the cult, was leading the chase. Robin pretended to flee while leading them to a frozen and steep mountaing range covered in mist. He activated a trap he had set beforehand, throwing giant rocks that hit them, and made them fall though a cliff. Many of them died instantly._

_Robin coldly watched it from a safe place until the rocks stopped falling. He got down thanks to a rope he had hidden close and went to examine the Grimleals. He killed the few survivors without hesitation. Then he got to the High Hierophant and took his robes._

_A trophy for killing one of the strongest mages in Plegia._

_A warning to everyone that tried to pursue him._

_Grimleal hunters dropped after that, and he barely found any other for the nine months that had followed. His idea seemed to have worked, even if the price for it was being unable to wander into most human settlements, knowing his clothing wouldn't be welcomed. He didn't mind it too much. He was used to be alone._

_Until on day he lost both his conciousness and memory wandering through a field south Ylisse._

He had killed him without second thoughts.

Robin gulped and stared at a nearby plant, trying his best to overcome the feelings of misery, loneliness and anger that came with the memory. He didn't bothered answering the Grimleal, shooting him with his magic and letting Chrom finish the job. Robin simply stared at him, grabbing his magic tome with such a strenght he was sure his knuckles were white under his gloves.

He felt Chrom softly grabbing his arm and found his worried expression staring at him.

"Are you fine? What did he say?"

Robin pressed his lips and looked away. The fury was starting to become overwhelming and he found himself thinking about cutting that corpse into little pieces. He stopped his thoughts at that moment, horrified about it. What the hell was he thinking?

Robin forced himself to stop staring at the body and instead looked at the army. The Shepherds had finished fighting and were regrouping and getting closer to them.

"Just some madness about his cult. Nothing important." Robin replied, and started walking away from that place without waiting for his answer.

It wasn't tecnically a lie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took longer that I wanted, sorry! I'm having a lot more work than I expected.


	5. Chapter 5

The first thing Robin saw when aproaching the Plegian capital was the skull, so big it could fit a city under it. The tactician did, in fact, see several buildings lying under the bones, using it as a roof, as if it was a cave. Now he knew what those bones he had found before in the desert had belong to.

The knowledge did nothing to calm down the indescribable terror the vision gave him, or to stop the scratching sensation on his arms that had started when they got closer to them to hear Gangrel talk. It was completely unnatural and Robin was absolutely sure he should _not_ be there. Not then, not ever.

The tactician clenched his teeth and fought to supress his instinct yelling him to leave. They were there to save Emmeryn and they wouldn't leave without her. He waited for the right moment and ordered Flavia to kill the executioner. Everyone else started advancing though the scorching sand, fighting against Gangrel's troups.

An Ylissean monk arrived after a while and helped them, and Robin saw Chrom convice a Plegian mage to join them. The tactician had to swallow his protests of how dangerous she could be, remembering what had happened the last time they had found mages in the desert; remembering the tiny flashes of memories that had asaulted him before; and simply hoped the Plegian didn't backstab them. Fortunately, she seemed happy enough with the promise of leaving that place alive.

The Shepherds crossed the sand and arrived at the courtyard. Robin shot magic to the general, and Chrom finished him with his rapier. Then he yelled the order to Phila. The pegasi appeared, ready to rescue the Exalt no matter what.

Robin suddenly stopped advancing, his vision blurry and eyes unfocused. An awful shiver stroke him and made his hair stand on end. He had felt something similar before, some strange discomfort whenever they had a skirmish against the risen, but nothing as strong as then. Chrom stopped next to him with a worried expression, and asked him what happened. But the tactician was unable to answer before the undead archers appeared in front of his eyes.

They shot the pegasi to death and everything went wrong.

Robin started to think frantically, trying to find a way to save Emmeryn, to not give up the Fire Emblem, to _do_ something. Something that stopped Chrom from making a choice, knowing full well the moment they would put away their weapons they would be dead. In the end, Emmeryn chose for them.

It felt strange watching her fall. Like time had slowed down so much it seemed she would never actually hit the ground, as if the moment would strech forever to make sure the Exalt wouldn't die.

_The knives had taken ages to sink on his mother's body while the cold water surrounding him made verything numb, as if they would never actually killed her completely._

Basilio's yell managed to bring Robin back to reality. Chrom was gone, knelt next to his sister's body. Robin repressed his memories and feelings and concentrated on the hard stone, the merciless sun, the suffocating heat. They had lost and they had to _leave, leave, leave!_. He started running towards Chrom even before he realized it, grabbed his arm and forced him to get up and flee with the rest. The prince protested, wanting to retrive his sister's body. But if they were to leave alive, they had to run withouth wasting time. The tactician grabbed his hand harder and forced him to follow him while the army retreated.

Robin gave orders while they run, making sure everyone would be protected while they fled, still holding Chrom's hand. Everything felt unreal, as if he was having a nightmare he could wake up from at any second. His hands were shaking slightly and his breath and heart rate were faster than they should be. He had the feeling he was in shock, but a quick glance at Chrom's expression at his side told him he was barely even _there_. Even Frederick looked lost, like he was expecting orders from him. He had no option but to pull himself together and taking over the Shepherds untily they were safe.

The giant ribs with actual forts on them were yet another reminder ot the unnatural thing that laid dead in the desertic country. However, the ambush seemed to revive Chrom a little, if only to turn him into a swirl of fury that cut down everything on his path. Robin stayed closed to make sure he would be safe. Once they crossed the fortress where the Plegian commander stood, a woman with pink hair appeared and showed them a safe route. They managed to get to the Feroxian border after two days of march almost without rest.

* * *

The wall that protected the Feroxian country welcomed the hurt and tired soldiers. Flavia and Basilio made sure they all received proper treatement and had a place to rest. Robin and Frederick took charge, and divided the essential tasks task between themselves. They checked the Shepherds would be healed; letting Chrom and Lissa grieve in privacy and without pressure. Robin wasn't badly hurt, so he refused the Feroxian healer's help to close his wounds. He went on a round through half the Shepherds rooms to make sure everything was under control.

Maribelle threatened to hit him with her umbrella if he didn't rest too. He could hardly walk without his legs shaking and screaming for rest. He promised he would once he talked with Frederick.

Once he got to his asigned room half an hour later, the stars and the moon were shining on the sky. He was barely able to get his boots off before he fell unconscious on the bed. He didn't even remember to eat something.

* * *

When Robin opened his eyes, his body felt terribly sore and heavy. The clothes he had gone to sleep with clinged to his body in weird angles, due to him tossing around on his sleep. The bandages on his chest hurt. In his drozsy state, he wondered why exactly he had slept with them, before realizing there was an arm around his chest. Chrom was sleeping next to him, half of his face hidden on the crook of Robin's neck.

Robin's first thought was how peaceful he looked, his dark eyelashes contrasting agains his pale skin and his thin lips closed, but relaxed.

Robin's second thought was about how exhausted he had to had been for someone to enter his room and lay next to him without the tactician waking up at all. He was a light sleeper than suffered of insomnia more often than not.

Robin's third thought was wondering what had happened for him to be that tired. The memories of the last few days came crashing into his mind.

Emmeryn had been captured by Plegia. They had marched there to rescue her. The pegasi were dead. His mother was dead. Emmeryn was dead. Dead. They had failed. He had failed. Failed.

Gods, he had failed.

He bit his hand to stop himself from crying loudly, feeling the tears forming on his eyes, and not wanting to wake up Chrom. The taste of the leather told him he had forgotten to take his gloves out last night, but he didn't care at the moment. He was a failure, a failure, a failure. So useless he couldn't even do the one thing that army wanted from him. He should have never accepted to stay; he clearly had nothing to offer and they had survive perfectly without him before he arrived.

And why was he even crying? It was Chrom the one that had just lost his family, the one that was mourning the loss of the kindest sister the world woud ever meet. He was the one to be crying, not the tactician. And the Plegian man was sure that if the prince was to wake up at that moment, he would try to comfort him regardless of his own state. Robin felt pathetic, pathetic, so fucking pathetic. He should leave instead of constantly bother Chrom.

His fears came true when he saw the prince stirring next to him, waking up. Robin stopped biting his glove and looked away, praying he wouldn't notice how tense he was. It was, of course, impossible. Once Chrom's brain fully woke up and his expression turned into grief, he looked up to check on Robin to discover he could only see a very tense jaw and white hair. He furrowed his eyebrows when he saw that.

"What's wrong?" His voice sounded to soft, too gentle in Robin's ears.

"Nothing!" He replied. Too fast, too high pitched, too strangled.

Chrom sit to get a better look at his face and realized the tactician was avoiding looking at his face. The tactician panicked more when he realized his intentions and tried to avoid his eyes. Chrom frowned.

"Robin, what's wro-?"

"Stop!" The command was sharp like a cut, but full of sadness. "Stop! Just stop! It's you the one who just lost someone close, the one _I_ should be conforting; but it turns out I can't do something as simple as that! Not only can't save people as it is my job to do, but I also can't even make up for it!!"

"What are you talking about?" Chrom replied, sitting up, unable to believe what he was hearing. "You've saved up dozens of times! You're a person, not a god. You did you're best and I'm grateful. I would have never managed to plan somet-"

"So what?!" Robin sat, unable to control his frustration and starting to yell. "None of that matters if I fail at the worst possible moment! If I fail to save the most important person I have to save! If the only thing I can do is lose people figthing!"

Chrom realized Robin was too unsettled to process anything he said unless he managed to calm down, so he repressed his yells as best as he could and tried to speak softly. He was proud to realize his voice was just a bit louder than usual.

"So the other times when you did don't matter? When you saved Vaike and Sumia from the risen at the northen road? When you saved Ricken and Maribelle in the ambush at the pass? When you saved Lissa from the bandits on Regna Ferox? When you made sure that Donnel would be able to help us fight saving his village while not putting him in danger so he could get confidence and join us? When Gaius almost fell of a cliff and you sent Cordelia to save him while the rest distracted the archers? When you predicted how the bandits at the fortress would react and prevented Stahl and Sully from getting killed?"

Robin felt silent at the number of successes Chrom was listing. They didn't feel nearly as important as this failure for some reason, but Chrom's voice tone told him anything he tried to say to retort it would fell flat. So he just stared at his lap without talking. Chrom felt silent as well, not knowing what else to say, or perhaps having said everything he wanted.

"I remembered how I lost my mother." The tactician quietly broke the silence after a while.

He wanted to punch himself in the face right after it. Chrom was grieving the _recent_ loss of his sister. Turning this into a competition of who was suffering more wouldn't help him. And that happened years ago, it didn't matter anymore!

"I'm sorry." Chrom mumbled, which only made Robin feel worse.

He was going to say it didn't matter anymore when he felt Chrom's hand softly cleaning the tears on his face. He was crying again. He gave up pretending and hugged Chrom, who responded eagerly and tightly enought to hurt him a little. When the tactician heard his lover starting to cry, he realized everything since he woke up had been stupid and what he should have done was hugging Chrom and let both of them cry until they didn't have tears left.

They kept huging even after they had calmed down, eyes closed and silently listening the other breath, the other's heart beat until the rhythm returned to normal.

Robin spoke again, his voice firm and determined.

"We will stop Gangrel."

Chrom answered with the same conviction.

"Yes."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait! I was busy with another fic and exams and life in general. This will probably go a little slower than I wanted, but I won't abandon it! I'm afraid the next chapter will probably take a little, but I hope it's worth the wait.
> 
> And happy new year! I hope this holidays were great for all of you!


	6. Chapter 6

Robin supressed the need to yell and hit something. Asking Tharja for help preparing the tactics for the following battle seemed to have been a mistake.

Once back in Regna Ferox, they took a few days to recover and rest  before planning their next move. Both the Khans and Chrom wanted to go back to Ylisse recapture the capital. They wanted to encourage anyone willing to join them in a final assault against Plegia to avenge their Exalt and finish the war.

Robin had refused. They had suffered a great loss and were weak. A retreat would have been the best tactical decision in other circumstances. But in their situation, Plegian spies would be everywhere. They couldn't go back to Ylisse without risking fighting numerous skirmishes with the Plegians, as well as the risen. It could be a great cost of resources and time, not to mention how difficult it would be to recover the lost capital. Besides, it would give time to the Plegians to recover after their losses at the attack on their own capital.

"Then what do you suggest we do exactly?!" Chrom didn't bother to hide his frustration and impatience.

Robin stared traight into his eyes in the meeting. "We go straight for Gangrel and kill him. Without him, the army will demoralize and surrender as fast as possible. We will finish the war in one battle."

Basilio frowned. He didn't like it. "And we risk everything in one single swoop? If we fail, we'll lose everything!"

"And if we wait they'll become stronger than we can manage." Robin shrugged. "I know exactly how much we are risking, but time is not our ally anymore. We can do it if we prepare this carefully."

No one had liked the suggestion, but they ended up accepting it for a lack of a better option. Robin wanted to make absolutely sure they wouldn't fail this time. He tried to get as much information as possible to try to prevent any problem that could appear.

For that purpose, he had asked Tharja for help. The Plegian mage had been a soldier as well. He knew it was risky to trust a Plegian like her after such a recent defeat. But Robin was also painfully aware of how easy would have been for her to cause real trouble while they were recovering. If she had wanted to hurt someone, she already would have. Robin didn't have a good reason to not ask her for help when she could have such useful information.

Except he was already regretting it. The Plegina mage hadn't done much more than purr generic answers and tried to rub against his arm. Robin had already noticed the mage was quite creepy, but her strange obsession with him was beyond unnerving. He was losing his patience.

"Has someone told you you have the subtlety of a starving grizzl- in front of fish?" He groaned, freeing his arm from her hug.

She chuckled in a way that sounded a lot darker that Robin had ever heard. "Do you like it?" She asked with feign innocence.

Robin gave her a cold smile. "I hate it. And the more you do it, the more I want to put you in a carriage to the other side of the continent and never see you again."

Tharja seem to flater a litte, but quickly smiled again and opened her mouth. Robin was faster.

"I'm not interested in you." He declared. "And given what I've seen , I'm pretty sure I'll never be. So drop this, it's a waste of time. If this, and surviving, were the only reasons you joined us, I strongly suggest you leave. We have a lot on our hands, and the last thing we need is to babysit a Plegian mage."

She glared at him when she heard that, which surprised him a little. "I don't need a babysitter. I'm as good as any of your mages."

"Then prove it without the promise of getting in my bed if you do. Or without threatening to hex everyone unless I do what you want. At this moment, you're only a big annoyance."

She looked like she wasn't sure if she wanted to keep flirting to appease him or trying to hex him to do what she wanted.

"I have the information you need." She remined him.

"And I have plenty of sources. You're just the fastest and most convenient one." He declared.

Tharja stared in silence. She neither threatened or cooed him. Robin thought it was the first time he saw her seriously considering something in front of him. She frowned.

"So he doesn't mind?" She asked.

Robin felt lost. "What?"

"The prince. About your body."

Wait, what? How did she know…? No, no, rewind that. She was a dark mage. Robin _didn't_ want to know how she knew.

"No." He answered as firmly as possible. He didn't like knowing someone else knew of his relationship with Chrom. The more people knew, the riskier it would be. And she had just joined them… She could be dangerous.

But instead of trying to blackmail him with information aristocracy wouldn't like to know, she groaned and pressed her lips. She let her soulders lower, as if she was admiting defeat. "Surprising for an Ylissean." She mumbled.

Then she looked back at the tactician. "Fine, I won't tell your little nobles." She informed. "The Plegian army is used to fight in the sand, but walking around it is still too hard to be confortable. They will want to fight at the northern side, which has a steadier soil and is also closer to our current possition…"

And she inmediately started to say everything she knew of the Plegian army. Robin had to run to grab paper and a quill while mumbling a thanks and trying to frantically copy everything she was saying.

* * *

Every preparation for the battle had been finished. The Ylissean army was close to the field the battle would take place when Robin recieved strange news: Plegians were deserting en masse. The tactician needed a few seconds to understand what he had heard. That could make things so much safer and easier he was afraid to believe the news. Chrom seemed to instantly realize what was happening; what Emmeryn had been trying to tell him the whole time. Robin could do nothing but agree with him.

The tactician had known Chrom wouldn't be willing to be placed in a safe place that would be afar from Gangrel. The prince felt it was his duty to do what Emmeryn couldn't; he had to slay the Mad King and put an end to that war. Robin didn't disagree, but would have been happier if he could have stayed in a safer place. So he did the next best thing, and put Frederick and Stahl close to him, followed by Nowi, Lissa and the new girl, Olivia. The tactician himself would be next to Chrom, giving him as much support has he could need. The rest of the army had to cause as much chaos and distractions as possible while they advanced through Gangrel's troups. They had to make sure the enemy wouldn't focus on Chrom.

It turned out they didn't even need to advance, and Gangrel went straight for Chrom the moment he located him. He delivered his blows with an incredible speed that the prince had trouble blocking with the Falchion. The electricity of the levin sword made things worse, stunning Chrom and making his movements slower. It didn't hurt much, but the loss of agility could be lethal. Robin opened his book and threw flames at the king. The trickster avoided them with ease as well, but the glare he threw at the tactician told them he hadn't liked the interruption. Chrom took a few seconds to recover, and threw himself again at Gangrel. This time, he knew what to expect from the weapon. Grangrel had to retreat a few steps to recover his balance from the assault. But once he did, his speed and his electric sword threatened to give him the upper side of the battle again. Robin intervened again, throwing more fire to distract the king. Gangrel glared at the tactician as if he was considering killing him first to stop an annoyance. But Chrom threw himself again at full force, forcing the king to keep his attention on the prince. More hits, more fire and more hits again. And finally Chrom saw his chance, and striked Gangrel on his abdomen. Gangrel yelled and let his sword fall while Chrom finished him off.

Chrom and Robin stood there, panting, staring at the corpse with a growing pool of blood under him. They realized the fight continued around them. Chrom tried to yell, but his shouts got lost in the frenzy of the battle. Robin had an idea. He took the levin sword, raised it and used his magic to throw a lightning towards the skies. The sudden light made everything around them stop and stare at them. Robin lowered the sword and nodded at Chrom.

"Plegians!" Chrom shouted, standing firmly under the watchful eyes of everyone around him. "The Mad King is dead! You have lost, but every soldier that surrenders will be spared and treated with respect!" He promised them.

Some Plegians fled while others threw their weapons to the ground in surrender. The promise was kept and no Plegina was hurt. The Ylisseans had won the battle, and finished the war.

Chrom had thought he would have been happier about it.

* * *

The surrendering conditions Ylisse demanded from the Plegian country weren't many, but they were strict. It was explicitly stated they had to send Emmeryn's corpse back to her country. And yet, the only thing that reached the castle two weeks after the battle was a letter and a medium sized chest. The letter was a formal apology to the royal family. No one had been able to find the body. It didn't matter how much anyone searched around the Plegian castle courtyard, through the castle itself, or even the capital. It had been imposible to find, and therefore, impossible to return to the Ylisseans. As a compensation and proof of their goodwill, Plegia sent them an extra chest filled with gold and jewels to the castle.

Chrom had been furious. He tore the paper into pieces and stormed off the room with Frederick and Robin following him. He didn't want a piece of paper and some stupid coins. He wanted his sister back to be able to bid her farewell properly. Chrom had yelled they were lying and only wanted to desecrate her sister even more. But Robin remembered the chaotic state of the courtyard the day they went to save her. He was willing to believe they had actually lost her, even if the perspective made him angry as well.

Both Frederick and Robin followed him outside the room, but the tactician hesitated. Frederick was supposed to be much closer to Chrom, and would be the better option to comfort the prince. He sighted internally, and nodded at the knight. Frederick nodded back and kept following Chrom at a careful distance.

Robin took a deep breath, trying to convince himself it was the best option. He could go later, once Chrom had calmed down a little more. At that moment… corpse or not, there was a funeral to plan for the end of that week. He went downstairs.

* * *

The day of the funeral, there wasn't a single cloud in the sky. It was as if the good weather mocked the grief of the people present. Every noble from the Halidom, whether they had helped them fighting in the war or not, had been invited to attend the final farewell to their queen. The doors of the castle were open for the commoners as well. Many came to say their final goodbye to their beloved Exalt. Lissa broke down and started crying almost at the begining. Chrom put an arm around her shoulders, supporting her. He didn't cry, but Robin noticed his fixed stare and his tightened expression. He bit his lips and wished he could hold his hand.

Chrom and Lissa excused themselves right after it finished, and let to the servants the task of entertaining the nobles. Robin slipped away from the crowd, unnoticed.  He went to the closest entrance to the secret passages he knew of. The walls of that place were surprisingly laberinthycal. But the layer of dust he found when he discovered them told him no one had known of that hidden side in decades, or even centuries. Since the war was over and they would stay at the castle for longer periods, he was starting to consider cleaning everything a little bit. At least, so he could breath without the help of a handkerchief.

He traveled in silence through the darkness, listening to the sounds that filtered through the stone walls. They were all the reference he needed to know where he was. He walked and went up until everything was quiet, and he only heard the faint steps of the guards walking along him.

He turned left and right and stopped in front of a wall identical to the rest of the wall around him. He touched a couple of stones and the wall moved to the side in silence. He stepped outside and found himself in the living room of Chrom's chamber. It was empty, and a quick glance at the bedroom part confirmed it was empty as well. Chrom wasn't there. Robin frowned, puzzled. Was he with Lissa? But he was sure Maribelle had gone to see her…

Something clicked inside Robin's brain, and he frowned. He got through the secret door again. He traveled through the secret corridors in silence for a couple of minutes. Then he went out. The empty hallway welcomed him, but he knew he had only a few minutes before the guard would pass around there again. He turned right and stood in front of the wooden door of the closest chamber. It had been Emmeryn's chamber. He entered.

The living room was empty, but when Robin got closer to the door of the bedroom he heard a faint sound. He opened the door, sliding in in silence. Chrom was laying on the bed, hugging one of the pillows and crying his eyes out. It broke Robin's heart to see him in such a state.

He got on the bed and sat next to him in silence. He stroke his hair. The touched seemed to startled Chrom, who suddenly opened his eyes and stared at him, startled. Robin gave him a small smile, and lowered to kiss his forehead. Chrom blinked and snifed, the tears didn't let him see much. He let go of the pillow, sat and threw himself into Robin's hands. The tactician hugged him and kissed his hair while he felt him breaking down again after the brief pause.

"She was… amazing…" Chrom declared between sobs.

"Yes…" Robin wishpered in agreement. He kissed his hair and stroke his back, trying his best to confort him.

"Don't leave me…" Chrom's voice broke down at the end of the plea.

"Never." Robin promised.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't get me wrong, I don't hate Tharja. I really like her and I think she's a very interesting character... except when she's acting creepy with Robin. Which is something that happens so rarely in most supports except for a few comments out of nowhere I didn't even realice she was obsessed until my 4th run or so. In my opinion, the yandere thing is more OOC than anything else, and I wished they hadn't reinforced that part of her in other games where she appears :/


	7. Chapter 7

Two weeks of official mourning were established by the Council. But after the horrors of the war, people needed a distraction, to feel there would be hope for the future. It was decided to host a huge celebration for their victory as well at the end of the official mourning. Chrom had frowned when he heard the decision, but he had to admit they were right. And perhaps Robin would be right too and it would help him feel a little better. So, a huge celebration that lasted a week was prepared.

Every noble from the Halidom was to atend the ceremonies on the first day, and then stay for as many others as they wished, until the end of the week. It was a frantic time where everyone at the castle was busy making sure everything would be ready, rooms would be prepared for the nobles who would stay even longer, the food would be adequate, and entertainment would be provided. It was unlikely that most nobles would stay for the whole week, but Robin groaned thinking about the waste of money. Of course people wanted to celebrate their victory, but seven days was excesive; and while the country wasn't in banckrupty due to the war, the vaults were less full thant the tactician would have liked.

And to make things worse for him personally, the first dinner of the week would be a celebratory meal for Ylisse's victory at the war which every noble and general of the country would attend. And as Chrom's personal tactician, and the one who had harvested victory after victory with minimal casualties, Robin had been formally invited to attend.

The tactician knew he would be little more than an object of curiosity for the nobles, who knew how he had joined the Shepherds after having been picked up from the ground, literally. Going from nobody to master tactician in a matter of months made him quite the oddity, and not few of those nobles owed him the safety of their troops. Robin sighted. He'd much rather spend the night with his friends at the canteen in the barracks than at the castle, not wanting to dress up with pretty but uncomfortable clothes; but he knew better than to displease the aristocracy. At least they had given him clothes and wouldn't have to spend money on them. And Chrom, Lissa, Frederick, Maribelle and Sumia would be there, even if he doubted it would be proper to spend much time with them.

He had been thankfully seated next to a baron that was enthusiastic about his military tactics, and while Robin couldn't talk a lot because the older man was simply unable to shut up, at least he could enjoy the meal and didn't get bored. The verbosity of the nobleman to his left also meant that no one else was able to get into the conversation, which was something else Robin was thankful for. He wasn't the most social person and the baron was unkowingly saving him from many awkward moments with the rest of the guests next to him.

Once the meal was over, everyone moved to the ballroom, where some musicians had already started to play music. Robin quickly grabbed a drink from one of the servants that walked around the place to have an excuse that would save him from having to dance. He also got near the walls and tried to hide from Lissa as much as he could. Better safe from her possible mischief than sorry. He had learnt it the hard way.

The ball was the perfect time to gather information about every importan person involved (which was everyone), so Robin discreetly moved around the place, listening to conversations while pretending to drink. He sometimes nodded at Chrom and Frederick as a greeting from afar when they glanced at each other by accident. But Chrom was always busy with someone, so he never tried to approached them.

An hour and half had passed when he found a furious handmaiden in a corner of the room. The woman with short hair and slender shoulders was trying her best to hide her anger and not bother the rest of the guests. But Robin could easily see her clenched jaw, her lips pressed into a thin line and her closed fists, her body straight and tense.

Robin followed the direction of her gaze to find a small group of nobles. One man was a count from the northeast part of Ylisse. Robin didn't remember his name, but he knew that, while not a bad person, he was ambitious and impatient, and that was a dangerous combination. The woman next to him was dressed in a maroon dress with black lace around her shoulders and arms that was partially covered by her long, curly, dark hair. She was smiling at the people her complanion was talking to, but her body language clearly indicated she didn't want to be there. The noblewoman sometimes looked around until her glance found the servant in front of Robin and she would smiled slightly. The servant would melt everytime, but then got furious again staring at the couple. No, not at the couple, the tactician realized, but at the count. The servant adored her noblewoman, maybe even more.

Robin's brain started working even before he realized it. An incredible chance had appeared in front of him and he had to seize it. He aproached the servant with two glasses of wine and smiled at her. The servant jumped, startled, and looked warily at him for a second. Then she seemed to remember her position and bowed.

"My apologies, sir, I did not see you aproaching me."

"Don't worry." Robin told her. "I was wondering, do you know that woman?"

The servant looked at him with caution for a second. She was defensive, and while that meant he had to thread carefully, was a good sign to confirm his suspicions.

"She's Katerina Deralla, daughter of the marquis of Deralla. I'm her handmaiden, sir." She answered dryly.

"It doesn't look like your lady is very happy to be with those nobles." Robin commented as if he was talking about the rain.

"The count is her fiancé, sir. She couldn't be happier." The servant said.

The answer came swiftly and clearly, like something that had been rehearsed over and over. Her voice was also cautiously neutral, as if trying to hide how she really felt about the whole issue. Robin had to stop himself from smirking.

He gave the servant one of the glasses of wine and talked before she could protest. "Use this to approach your lady and tell her to pretend to faint in six minutes. I'll get you both out of here for a little while."

The tactician tried to make it sound like a proposal instead of an order, but he could feel his own excitement growing and making him a bit pushy. The handmaiden stared at him with distrust and confusion, but ended up taking the glass and slowly walking to the group of nobles. They were all clealy displeased by her interruption, but soon forgot about her once she left. Robin left his half-drunk glass on a table nearby and waited while pretending to admire the paintings on the walls.

A gasp, the shattering noise of a glass breaking and the sound of a body hiting the ground told him the noblewoman was doing what he had asked. He ran towards her with some other nobles and the handmaiden. Once he asured the worried nobles around him that he would take her to a quieter place, her finacé promptly forgot about her and resumed his conversation with the other companions. The tactician couldn't help but wonder what kind of person wouldn't even pretend to be worried about someone who had just fainted, but he didn't complain. It made things easier for him.

He carried the woman into the garden, closely followed by her handmaiden, and entered a gazebo full of flowers that would give them some privacy. It wasn't too close to the ballroom, nor in the route with the most beautiful and romantic flowers, so it was unlikely that someone would get close to them. Once inside, he let the noblewoman stand, and sat in front of her. The women sat at the other side, a bit closer than decorum would allow between a lady and her handmaiden, which only gave Robin more hopes.

"I apologize for my interrumption," Robin started talking "but it looked to me as if you would apreciate a pause from your companions. Given that you followed my little plan, I will assume I was right. My name is Robin, and I am the Shepherds' tactician."

The noblewoman's eyes lit up in recognition and she put a hand on her mouth in surprise.

"You are the master tactician that helped us win the war against Plegia? It is an honor to meet you personally. My name is Katerina Deralle, and my companion here is Jyne."

The handmaiden bowed her head, but still stared at the tactician cautiously. Robin ignored it. She seemed to be distrustful by nature, and he hadn't given them reasons to trust him yet.

"While I apreciate your help on letting me rest afar from my fiancé's friends, I must wonder why exactly did the prince's tactician decide to assist a lesser noble like me in such a situation." Katerina said then.

She knew he had an ulterior motive; she wasn't an idiot. Robin liked that. He shifted and leaned on the wooden wall behind him, looking directly at them.

"There is something I wish to talk with you. I have a… proposal that could benefit all of us greatly."

Katerina stared back at him, a sparkle of interest on her eyes.

"And what would that be, sir tactician?"

Robin looked at the wooden wall behind them. The next part would either be the start of the negociation or the complete end of their small meeting, as well as the start of a feud. He decided to warn them, in case that could improve his chances.

"My proposal starts with a piece of knowlegde I acquired tonight. A piece of knowledge you won't like me to know." Robin paused, waiting for their reaction. Both women tensed when they heard that, but Katerina nodded and encouraged him to continue. "However, that is exactly the reason why I'm talking with you right now. And I also want to declare that, regardless of how we end this talk, I will not use this information against you in any way." He raised his arms, wanting to garantee them his intentions.

Katerina stared at him, serious, and waiting for him to talk. She already suspected what he woud say. Robin decided to get to the point.

"You two are lovers."

Katerina paled instantly, but didn't do or say anything. Jyne, however, got up with a look of fury and fear worthy of someone in battle. Robin was sure for a split second that the servant would punch him in the face, but the noblewoman arm rose to stop her companion.

"Kate!" The handmaiden complained, staring at her lady. Her fear leaked through her voice.

"Sit down, Jyne." Katerina sounded tense, but didn't raise her voice.

She stared at Robin, who looked back at her without moving, trying to appear as non-threatening as possible. The servant finally sat down next to Katerina, definetly too close to be appropiate, and no longer hiding her hostility towards the tactician. The noblewoman clearly wasn't happy with that situation, but she seemed willing to listen, if only because Robin had the upper hand at the moment.

"And what is the proposal?" Katerina didn't waste time.

Robin licked his lips. He didn't like showing weakness to a potential danger, but he knew he'd be doing little more than coercing them unless he gave them something that put them on equal grounds. And this wouldn't work unless they were all happy with it.

"I am, too, in a relationship with a nobleman I cannot marry due to social conventions." Their surprise was immediate, and they also dropped their guard a little. It turned out everyone on that gazebo was on the same page. "As such, my proposal is simple: you marry him and no one of us will have to be forcibly separated from the person they love."

Katerina bit her lip and looked away. "Your proposal is, indeed, an interesting one, but I am afraid I am already enganged."

"Milady's family used to be more powerful than it is now," Jyne added then, "and marrying the count will improve them socialy and economicaly."

"Well, that could be a problem; but if that is the case I find hard to believe your parents would complain about a proposal fron the future Exalt."

The women stared at him with her eyes wide, understanding his words. Jyne was the first one to react.

"You're fucking the _Exalt_?!"

Robin was sure he would have choked on a drink if he still had one.

"Uh, hm, yes?" He answered, still caught short, and blushing softly.

"Jyne, be polite." Katerina scolded her handmaiden, feeling shame from her behaviour.

"He's fucking the Exalt!" Jyne insisted, as if that justified everything.

"He's, huh, not the Exalt yet." Robin said, not really knowing how to react to that outburst.

Jyne rolled her eyes.

"Details, details. Who cares? He's the current ruler and will have his ass on the throne in no time."

"Jyne!" Katerina scolded her again, scandalized.

Robin just chuckled. "Try not to say that around Frederick or he'll make you clean the whole castle on your own."

Jyne frowned. "Who's Frederick? That guy in a suit that was following the prince during the ball and that looked like he had a stick up his ass?"

Robin was unable to stop himself from snorting. "The same."

"He looks like he'd do that." Jyne agreed.

"Jyne, please, behave." Katerin insisted.

She was starting to redden from the embarassement. Jyne leaned her head on her shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah, sorry." She didn't sound sorry at all.

"I assure you, sir Robin, she's an excellent servant when she wants to."

"When I want to." The handmaiden's smile wasn't apologetic.

Robin laughed, not offended at all, much to Katerina's relief.

"Back to my proposal." The tactician didn't mind the intimacy of the women, but they had been there for a while and it was better if all of them were back at the ball soon. "I still have to talk things with Chrom, but I don't think he will refuse. Once I know his answer tonight, I'll pass a note under the door of your room with it. If he accepts, my plan was having you two spend as much time as possible together during the week; and ending it with a formal proposal from him to your parents and you."

"But my family wanted to go back in three days…"

"Which is why he will invite you and your family to every social gathering and meal I can pull off." Robin made a small pause "Without being too suspicious. Your fiancé won't like it."

"Fuck him." Jyne groaned.

"This won't work if he gets paranoid. We need people to know you're interacting with each other, but not get too intimate until the end of the week. Well, do you agree to do this?"

Both women looked at each other. They were uncertain, but there was hope on their eyes; a hope they hadn't felt since Katerina had been engaged to the count.

"We will." The noblewoman acepted while Jyne just grabbed her hand in agreement.

Robin released a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. A step closer. It could work.

He got up and smiled at them. "In that case, let's go back to the ball. Everything will be faster and smoother if I present you to him there."

* * *

"Why were you so interested in having me talk to that woman?"

The question lingered in the air once it got out of Chrom's lips and Robin had the feeling everything in the room had become still. The prince wouldn't like he was scheming behind his back, but Robin had seen a chance and couldn't let it go. He turned to face the man siting in bed and breathed deeply.

"Chrom," He started, looking at him "whether you like it or not, you are going to be the next Exalt. And that means you have responsabilities."

The prince stared at him. He had the feeling he wasn't going to like what the tactician was going to tell him next.

"Those responsabilities include marrying someone and give the Halidom the next heir."

Chrom's expression stiffened and he almost glared at Robin. He stood up.

"So you were finding me a wife? That's what this is about?"

Robin averted his gaze. He breathed deeply to compose himself and stared back again, closing his hands to form a fist.

"She's two years older than you, she's clever and comes from a noble family. She's in a relationship with her handmaiden in the same way you and I. Her parents are desperate for prestige and won't dare to refuse her hand to you. It's... it's better than anything I could ever plan. I wanted to talk with you before doing anything, but this was a chance I couldn't let slip…"

"She's engaged." Chrom pointed out.

"The count just want's more power. Pretend you knew nothing until the last day, give him a plot of land as an apology and he will leave you alone."

It sounded reasonable enough. Chrom wondered what else Robin had planed. The tactician kept talking.

"If you agree, you're suposed to spend time with her at meals and social gatherings, so everyone will notice you're meeting each other, but not in a suspicious way. At the end of the week, you'll write a letter to her parents asking her for marriage, and propose in the final ball."

Chrom closed his eyes and put his hands on his face, shaking his head slowly.

"And how long do I have to think bout it?"

"Tonight." Robin answered. Chrom stared at him, bewildered. "I'm supossed to give them a note tonight with your answer. And I was also thinking of you inviting her formaly to have lunch with you tomorrow. The sooner we start, the less suspicious everything will be."

His words were met with silence. Robin looked away. The anxiety was eating him from the inside. He really hoped Chrom wasn't angry with him, but he clearly wasn't happy. Seconds seemed to last hours in the quietness of the room until Chrom sighted in resignation.

"Sometimes I wonder if there's something you don't plan…"

"I'm sorry." Robin blurted out, his nerves betraying him "I wanted to have done this differently, and I really _don't_ want to force you to accept, but—"

"But this is likely to be the best chance we'll ever have." Chrom finished. He sighted then, his shoulders sinking. "It's fine, I'm not angry with you. It's just… I guess the responsability of being the next Exalt didn't really sink until now…" There was a small pause in which the prince closed his eyes and composed himself. "I'll do it."

Chrom took Robin's hand to show him that he wasn't lying and the tactician felt himself relax a little. Robin hated that part of himself. He could stare in the eyes someone that was about to throw an axe to his face without even flinch, but knowing a friend was upset at him was enough to reduce him to a shaking mess. At least he hadn't started crying. Anxiety was his worst enemy.

"I'll put the note and come back." Robin said.

"I'll be waiting." Chrom promised, with a ghost of a smile on his face.

The tactician nodded and took a paper and ink from Chrom's desk. Then he heft.

Chrom sat heavily on his bed. If Emmeryn had still been alive, he wouldn't have to do any of this. But then it would be her the one to be forced to marry someone, and the prince felt incredibly selfish for wishing it was her the one going through all of this. He thought about her, her smile, her patience, her empathy, her affection. He was sure she would have loved to welcome Robin into the family, even if they could never make it official. He was sure she had been happy to give him the best she could. Robin wanted the best for him as well.

But a world in which Emmeryn was still the Exalt, "the best for Chrom" was fundamentally different than a world in which the throne had fallen upon him. Chrom sighted. He wished the realization had happened sooner.

The door opened slowly and Robin entered the room again. He nodded at Chrom; the note had been delivered. It had started.

Chrom got up and softly grabbed his hands. "Will you stay tonight?"

Robin smiled at him. "Of course, if you want me to."

Chrom smiled back and kissed his lips. Robin answered and freed his hands to hug him instead while Chrom put his around his waist. The kiss was short, but left them both with a warm feeling inside.

"Chrom," Robin whispered while the prince kissed one of his eyes. He humed to indicate he was listening "make love to me."

Chrom stopped and stared at him, surprised. "Are you sure? I've never…"

"I trust you." Robin assured him with a smile.

Chrom nodded and kissed him again. He picked him up and softly left him on his bed. Robin welcomed the prince's weight with a hug. And Chrom kissed him, and kissed him, and kissed him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New chapter! I hope you like the OCs!
> 
> And thank you everyone so much for the comments! They make my day!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote the second part of the chapter listening non-stop to both versions of Vage Hope from Nier Automata. So if you like music suggestions, there you have it! Enjoy!

Robin woke up as soon as the sunlight entered the room. He yawned and untangled himself from Chrom, who was sleeping like a log. The tactician felt tired and drowzy. Having asked Chrom for a second _and_ a third round after they woke up from their first sleep hadn't been his smartest idea. It was so strange to see the tactician denying himself whatever sleep he could get Chrom had actually stopped and asked if he was using the sex as some form of apology for the marriage plan. Robin denied vehemently. He just wanted to be with him.

The tactician forced himself to get out of the bed and dress up. He had things to do. Robin wrote a note for Chrom reminding him of the plan and what invitations he had to write. Then he got out of the chamber through the secret door well hidden in the living room. He traveled through the hidden corridors in almost complete darkness for a few minutes. Then he pushed a small lever and got out. He had appeared at the guest wing. There were less guards there than around the royal wing, and Robin slipped into Katerina's chamber unoticed. He had to thank Gaius for teaching him how to pick locks eficiently.

He knocked the door to the bedroom and waited. He heard some muffled noises beyond, and Jyne opened the door after a while. She had her best "servant" face, altough she looked a little annoyed at being woken up so early. Her face changed into one of surprise when she saw the tactician.

"What are you doing here so early?"

"Telling you the plan in detail." He answered without missing a beat. "Where is Katerina?"

The noblewoman appeared behind Jyne and stared at him, giving him her full attention. Robin breathed deeply, organizing his thoughts.

"There will be a big lunch today. Nothing as fancy as last night, but still important. You will be invited, of course; but I'll make sure you are close to Chrom's seat; and your fiancé and parents are sat as far as I can. I cannot sit you next to Chrom, however. That would be too forward."

"And how about the count?" Katerina asked.

"I'll tell Chrom to sit him next to someone that can keep him entertained. I'm open to suggestions, if you have them. In the afternoon there will be some other activities to entertain the guests. Go to any you want, but if you see Chrom in them, don't aproach him yet. Wait for the ballroom that will take place tonight. Once it starts, dance with two or three people, and then Chrom will aproach you. Try to look interested while you dance."

"But the count—" Jyne started.

"He'll be away in a riddle contest with other nobles who would rather try to use their wits than their feet for entertaining. But your parents will be at the dance. Make sure they see you interact with Chrom. If you feel it would be safe to have a second dance with him after a while, go for it, but try to not overdo it. Nobody can suspect something's up."

Both women nodded, with a determined look on their eyes.

"And one last thing." He stared directly at Jyne. "I need you to be my eyes. I may have been invited to the celebration last night, but I was pretty much a pet to satisfy the nobles curiosity towards the unknown tactician that earned the victory at war. Most won't want me at the activities again, so I can't go. But you do. Pay attention to everything, particularly to how people react around Katerina and Chrom. I'll come again at night so you can inform me. Once I know I'll start detailing tomorrow and the next day's plan."

"You have already planned for tomorrow?" Jyne asked, eyes wide.

"Um, yeah? I thought of going a bit slower, so I you'll just go to the play that will take place in the afternoon and talk with Chrom in public both before and after the play. Maybe you could discuss what you liked or not further after it's finished while you wait for dinner. You're fiancé probably go too unless he shows absolutely no interest on the play, but he shouldn't be a problem. Protesting about you comenting the play with another man would make him look paranoid, I doubt he'll do anything. The next day is when you're suposed to leave, but you're parents will have trouble refusing a direct invitation from the prince for a falconry hunt, as well as some board games after it's finished to relax before dinner. I haven't thought exactly of what to do the next day, partly because I want to see how these days develope, but I have a couple of options…" He trailed off, and then he realized the two women were staring at him as if he had suddenly become a manakete.

"You truly are an amazing tactician, sir Robin." Katerina declared, still having trouble believing the man in front of him had planed so far ahead in barely a single night.

"Yeah, you're crazy." Jyne agreed.

Robin shut his mouth, suddenly aware of the rambling he had been inmersed in, and blushed in embarassement. He reminded them of what they had to do that day and left.

* * *

Robin had refused to let Katerina's fiancé leave before Chrom's proposal. If the count wasn't acknowledged, they could risk letting people suspect something was being plotted behind his back related to Chrom's and Katerina's fast growing interest on each other. Her parents looked very satisfied knowing her daugther was forging such a powerful friendship. The count hadn't started to suspect the posibility of his fianceé growing too close to the prince until the very last day. He made the mistake of not complaining until he saw Chrom publicly asking for her hand to both her and her parents the last day of the celebrations.

(Lissa gasped so hard a servant aproached her, thinking she was choking. Frederick almost dropped his drink)

But as Robin had predicted, her parents were more than delighted to get political ties with the Ylissean royalty, and the count forgot all his complaints once he got a big plot of land not too far from his property.

That night Robin was pacing around his room like a caged dragon, waiting for Jyne's report with his heart in his throat. But the big smile she had when she entered his room and the hug she gave him told him everything he needed to know. She almost started crying of relief, and Robin could feel the tension of his body starting to leave as well.

_It had worked._

Jyne left a little after that, and Robin considered going to see Chrom; but since the proposal had been public, he expected someone would come to see him as well. Half an hour later, he heard a soft knock on the door to his room. Lissa entered with a worried expression that became even worse when she saw him giggling like a fool with a soft blush on his cheeks. He looked extremely happy, and she didn't know how to tell him the news about the proposal.

"Hum… Robin… Something happened today and…" She started, not knowing exactly how to break the news.

But Robin just smiled at her like a fool. "Chrom and Katernia are going to get married."

Her eyes widened in surprised. "Y-yes. How did you know…?"

"I can't believe this worked."

"What?"

When the cleric showed her confusion, Robin summarized the situation for her. She listened with a mouth on her hand. Being raised as a princess, she felt a bit unsettled about the scandal and disgrace of the situation. But this way her brother and her friend could be happy, they could make another couple happy, and the Council would leave them alone.

"Ok." She smiled after a bit. Robin's happiness at the moment was contagious. This couldn't be a bad idea if both him and his brother were smiling like they were the ones engaged, she decided. "I'll keep it a secret, of course." She asured. Robin nodded and thanked her.

His happiness was interrupted by a sudden wave of nausea. He gritted his teeth and grabbed the chair for support until it passed. Lissa got closer, alarmed. Robin swallowed and cleaned the sweat on his forehead.

"It's fine." He assured, but he sounded too breathless for her to like it. "It's been a very stresful week, I think I've just started to release the anxiety…"

"Lay down." She ordered in the voice she used whenever she had healing duties.

Robin did, nor really feeling like arguing, and let her examine him. She didn't find anything serious, so she left the room for a few moments to get him a relaxing infusion and brought it back to him. She still forbid him to leave the room that night, he needed rest. Robin accepted, resigned, and asked her to leave a message for Chrom.

* * *

Both the wedding and the coronation were planned for the same day, two weeks after Chrom's proposal. And after not few complaints from both Robin and the treasurer claiming the vaults were less full that anyone would have liked, and that there had been enough celebrations for the time being. The decision would also reduce the time other nobles would waste traveling to the capital from their castles and foretress, so nobody complained too loudly.

There were many things to plan and the castle turned into a bigger frenzy than when they had to prepare the celebrations for the victory and the end of the war. Robin hadn't been able to rest as much as he would have liked, having been tasked part of the planning. He was constantly exhausted and slightly irritated.

He woke up when dawn was barely starting, sky still dark with a lighter blue line on the horizon. He felt as if someone had kicked him in the stomach, and he was sure his face was pale. He tried to move slowly while getting out of the bed, but he kept feeling worse as time passed. He leaned on his arms instead of siting straight, hoping it would help his nausea. It didn't do much. He felt his body covered with a thin layer of cold sweat and the sudden pain in his stomach told him he was going to throw up. He got up as fast as he could and went to the toilet, reaching for the bucket just in time to not make a mess in his room.

Once he stopped, he put the bucket aside and got up slowly, his arms shaking. He sat heavily on the chair and brought the jug of water and the bowl to the desk to clean himself. He didn't feel better, but he tried to breath deeply and slowly to relax. Today was Chrom's coronation and wedding; he couldn't afford not to attend, much less making a mess of himself. He would make everyone worried and and he'd die of embarassement.

He heated the clean water left on the jug and dropped some herbs he kept on his room. He laid down again while the infusion got ready. Then he drank it slowly and waited for it to help his stomach. He breathed slowly once he felt better and started dressing on the clothes Frederick had delivered the previous day. He didn't own anything special, but he couldn't go to such ceremony wearing his usual robes, so the knight had made sure he was made a special attire for the ocasion. Lissa had been the one to get his measurements.

The new clothes were light blue with white details and dark blue pants, and tighter than he was used to. They were still quite confortable. He could probably spend the whole day on them without wanting to scratch every single part of his body.

Robin checked the time looking at the window. Dawn had finished and he could heard the rest of the Shepherds leaving the canteen. Everyone had woken up and was getting ready for the ceremony that would begin at noon. The day was starting, and at that meant it was unlikely that anyone would come to see him until the hour the ceremony started. That gave him some time. He sliped from his room and got to the closest secret passage he knew of. He arrived at the secret door in Chrom's chamber a few minutes later, but the noise he heard told him the prince wasn't alone. It looked like Frederick was helping him getting ready. Robin patiently waited until the noise disappeared. It was likely they would leave Chrom alone for a while until the ceremony, and Robin was waiting for that chance. After a few minutes, he heard Frederick leave.

Robin entered the room at the same time Chrom sighted heavily. It made the tactician chuckle.

"You don't sound very excited about your wedding, milord" He teased him with an easy smile.

Chrom turned his head, alarmed, when he heard a voice from behind, but relaxed when he saw Robin coming from the secret door. That thing was so damn well hidden he usually forgot it was there. Robin had kept the existence of the secrete passages to himself and Chrom only, both for safety and self-interest, but he had advised Chrom to block that part of the room whever he went to sleep. The prince still forgot to do it most of the time.

Robin had gone there ready to tease or cheer up Chrom if needed, knowing he wasn't excited for the wedding nor the coronation —yet another remainder of his dead sister—, but the vision of him left him breathless. Chrom was wearing a dark blue attire with gold details, with a heavy, light blue cloak covering it, crowned with a golden circlet decorated with a red gem.

He was _gorgeous._

"By your reaction I'm going to asume I look good." Chrom said then, with a teasing look on his eyes.

Robin felt the blood rushing to his face. He got closer to him and then noticed the colors of their respective attires _almost_ matched. That couldn't have been a coincidence. He should have worried about someone noticing, but instead his heart started fluttering, his mind trying to picture how they would look next to each other.

"Yes." The part of his brain that was still there managed to produce an anwser.

Chrom didn't tease him inmediately, and by his look Robin guessed he was having the same kind of realization. He stared intensly at Robin's face, with a soft blush on his cheeks and the most endearing expression he had seen him wear. Robin thought his chest was going to explode. It couldn't be healthy to feel this excited, this happy, over a couple of pieces of cloth.

Chrom searched for something in one of his pockets. He took one of Robin's hands and put it on it. It was a signet ring with the crest of the royal family of Ylisse. Robin stared at it in confusion until Chrom explained.

"My parents had it made for me when I was born. So I could give it to the person I loved. And I…" He swallowed, feeling nervous. Why was he nervous? They had been together for months already "I want you to accept it." He managed to blurt out, waiting intensely for Robin's answer.

The other man stared quietly at the ring, with an expression the prince couldn't quite place. Then Robin slowly took out the glove of the hand withouth that purple brand and put on the ring. It fit. He put on the glove again to hide it from people who shouldn't see it. Then he gently grabbed Chrom's hands and pressed their forheads together. He breathed slowly, trying to make the knot in his throat dissapear.

"Chrom." His voice was a whisper, but sounded serious. His closed eyes and gentle but firm grip on his hands made the situation strangely solemn in Chrom's eyes, and he waited until Robin spoke again.

"Will you be at my side, protect me and help me, love me, until your last breath?"

Oh. Oh, gods. Chrom felt his heart hammering his chest so fast it almost hurt. He had to swallow to untie the knot on his own throat.

"Yes." He answered, breatheless. He swallowed, knowing what Robin was patiently waiting for. "Will you be at my side, protect me and help me, love me until your last breath?"

"Yes." The tactician's answer came without hesitation.

They kissed, pressing his lips intensely; but Robin tightened the grip on his hands to make sure they wouldn't hug yet.

They opened their eyes slowly after it. Robin raised an arm to clean a tear that was escaping from Chrom's eyes. Both were blushing with a soft smile in their faces.

"How am I going to tell Katerina I'm already married?" Chrom's smile widened, and he sounded the happiest he had been in his life.

"I'm sure she'll understand." Robin answered. His voice did waver sligtly and he had to swallow. "And I'm sure Jyne will comfort her if necessary."

They stood next to each other, grabbing their hands in a comfortable silence. After a while, Robin sighted and slowly separated from Chrom. The time for the ceremony was coming and he couldn't be found on that room.

"I should leave. I'll see you at the althar." Robin winked at him.

Chrom grabbed tightly his hands for a second as a farewell and watched him disappear though the secret passage.

* * *

Lissa's worries turned into surprise when she saw both her brother and Robin beaming with happiness at the ceremony. She had been the one who had suggested the colours of Robin's clothes, thinking the matching hues could provide them some comfort when one of them would get married to someone else.

She hadn't expected them to look so happy they could be confused with a couple on a honeymoon. Even Katerina looked slightly puzzled at Chrom's obvious joy when they exchanged the vows.

But Lissa was then completely sure: something that gave both of them such a bliss couldn't be bad.


	9. Chapter 9

Chrom was suddenly awakened by the loud voice of a woman.

"Morning lovebirds! How was your night?" A brunette young woman was standing in front of the bed, with both hands on her waist and a huge grin on her face.

"Jyne?! What are you doing here?!" The newly wed Exalt sat upright, while Katerina fumbled around bed, suddenly awakened and startled by her handmaiden.

Jyne stared at them critically. They were both dressed and the bedsheets weren't particularly untidy. Definetively nothing noteworthy had happened that night. Jyne shook her head in what seemed disappointment, to the confused pair.

"Well? What are you waiting for? C'mon, up! Up!! I have to fix this before someone else comes." She gesticulated wildly to make sure they would hurry.

The nobles promptly obeyed and ran away from the bed, standing next to her. Then Jyne got onto it and started to crease the cloth as much as she could.

"Fixing… what, exactly?" Chrom asked, watching her mess up his bed in a way that would have given Frederick a heart attack.

"Everything!" She replied, as if it was obvious "You two are supposed to have gone through a really passionate first night, so I came here early to make sure that was exactly what it looked like!" Jyne stared at a pillow that was on her hands with a malicious smile "Should I tear it? It'll add some spice…"

"No! They're expensive!" Chrom replied.

Jyne frowned, disappointed, but then she shrugged and threw it to the ground. She took a knife out from a pocket and made a small cut on her finger, and let a few drops fall onto the sheets. When Katerina saw it, she blushed intensly and had to look away.

"There. That should be enough." Then she turned to Chrom and Katerina, who were still staring at her without knowing what to do, but blushing a little more than before. "Robin left me a message for you, too. He said you're forbidden to go to the barracks for a few days."

"What?!" Chrom's reaction was instant and disbelieveing, but Jyne just rolled her eyes.

"You've just married. You have to act like it! And going to check on your tactician first thing in the morning while ignoring you're wife is going to be strange at least. Go around holding hands and drink tea together or something. Marriage is the first step, you have to fool everyone now."

Chrom pressed his lips, but didn't protest. She was right, of course.

"Then perhaps we could start having breakfast together?" Katerina looked at Chrom apologetically, apologizing for her handmaiden's straightforward behaviour.

The Exalt's face relaxed a little. He was the main actor in an important play, and he had to play his part. And his partner, Katerina, was a nice and intelligent girl. He could do it. They both could.

"That will be great." He answered with a sincere smile.

"Good!" Jyne sudden voice startled him "Because breakfast will be coming here in half an hour, probably less. Try to look less ready and more naked, seriously."

Then she walked to the door, getting really close to Katerina and sneaking a kiss to her cheeck, before grabbing the doorknob, yelling a farewell and leaving the room. The longhaired woman  blushed intensely, but Chrom just thought of how adorable the small act had been. The handmaiden would probably be close to them, since it was her duty to help her lady however she could, and Chrom felt a bit jealous. He too wanted to sneak up on the tactician and kiss his cheek when he least expected, to see his reaction. He realized Robin would probably want to go to the castle as much as he wanted to go to the barracks, and that precisely because of that he wouldn't appear there at all unless there was an emergency that required him. Because it was safer for everyone. For Chrom.

"We are really lucky to have them." Chrom sighed with a smile, still staring at the closed door.

"Yes, we are." Katerina agreed. Then she giggled. "Shall we get ready for breakfast? Or less ready…"

* * *

It turned out Chrom had more things to do than he had remembered, and papers had piled up on his desk, forgotten on the last days of frenzy before the wedding. Frederick helped with anything he could, but since Chrom had to spend the afternoons with Katerina, he hadn't been able to go to the barracks for four days. Not only had he wanted to see all of his friends again, but he had started to get worried about his lack of training.

He arrived at the barracks right after lunch, so most of the Shepards were still there, finishing their meals. They smiled at him and congratulated him on the marriage, with a couple of indecent coments courtesy of Vaike, much to Maribelle's displeasure. Chrom had just sat down when the door to the canteen opened and two people entered. Robin's gloves were black and he was holding a charred piece of wood, while frowning intensely. Miriel's face was serious as well. They both slumped on chairs next to the table, the tactician throwing the wood onto the flat surface as if its presence offended him.

"So… hum… how was this time?" Ricken asked the newcomers, already fearing the answer.

"Bad." Robin groaned, still staring at the wood as if he wanted to kill it.

"Unsatifactory." Miriel added.

"I still can't believe it burned so fast. It's oak!"

Miriel hummed in agreement.

"Maybe with stone…?" Robin proposed, not very convinced himself.

"Previous results confirm that unless we find a method to stabilize and control the temperature, the surface of the material will augment until it becomes untouchable."

Sully had enough.

"By Naga, you've been like this for three days!" Her voice boomed though the silent room, startling Robin and Miriel, who stopped mumbling and looked at her "I thought you came here to eat, not discuss your stupid box! And Chrom's here!" 

"Sorry." Robin mumbled, but smiled at his friend and waved. Then he started to munch unhappily at his food, glaring from time to time at the charred piece.

"And what's that… experiment about?" Chrom asked, wanting to talk with him more after so many days.

Stahl looked at him as if he had made a terrible mistake, and suddenly almost everyone present remembered they had things to do and left the place. Robin's face lit up almost literally and smiled at him so warmly Chrom was sure he was blushing himself.

"It's something I've been wanting to do since before the war ended, actually." The tactician started scratching his neck under his left ear in excitment "I wanted to try to make a better method of heating, a more efficient one. Metal carries heat really well, so I thought that maybe if we cover the wall of a room with iron and heat a small part, it could eventually warm the whole room." His smile wavered "But…"

"We fabricated a wooden box with an internal metallic structure." Miriel continued "The idea was to apply high temperature on an end outside the wood, and let the metal transfer the heat though the box, creating a warm space within it."

"But the heat gets so high the wood burns. And if we stop applying heat, it becomes cold really fast. So we need a way to make the temperature stable." The tactician sighed "And we have nothing so far."

The mage adjusted her glasses.

"It is perhaps in our best interest to meditate on this dilemma, and approach it from another perspective."

Robin hummed, munching on a piece of bread. A break could help him become unstuck from it. At least it was better than thinking about it over and over. And he'd burn less resources, literally.

"How about you take a break with some training?" Chrom proposed, remembering the other reason why he had gone to the barracks "It's been a while."

"I'd love to." Robin gave him a small smile. "But I've been a bit dizzy lately. So I think I'll just look and tell you all of your mistakes." He gave the Exalt a mischievous smile. He was glad to have Chrom's company again.

Chrom chuckled and nodded. He felt he had been away weeks instead of a few days.

* * *

The solution to the heating problem came up some days later, when Robin was having some tea Jyne had brought him on a whim. She was sneaky and unpredictable for a servant, but cunning enough to act like that when nobody important was looking. The servant slumped on his bed without asking permision after leaving the kettle and teacup on his desk.

"Our Exalted ruler misses you, y'know?" She started.

Robin raised his eyebrows.

"I see him almost everyday now while training."

"I mean in private. At night. That thing." She gave him a mischievous smile.

"Oh." He realized, blushing softly. "Well, I was thinking of letting some time pass, since the wedding happened not long ago…"

"That was two weeks ago!" Jyne laughed, throwing the metal tray up and catching it again with her hands before it could hit her face. "People don't expect them to bang everyday, you know?"

"Yeah, I do." He answered, raising a naked hand to grab the teacup without looking, still reading his notes "I didn't think it would have been two weeks already…" The experiment was on a deadend and he was spending all day thinking about it. He had been engrossed by it. "Ouch!" He hissed in pain, touching the kettle instead by accident.

"Be careful, the water is really hot." Jyne informed, too late.

"Yeah, I noticed." The tactician replied, sucking on his hurt finger.

Then he realized how strange that conversation had been. She had told him the water was hot. But what he had touched was metal. The metal that was hot because the water inside was still hot… He looked at the tray the handmaiden was still playing with.

"Let me touch that." He demanded, grabbing the platter before it could fall again, earning a cry of protest.

It was cold, but at one time, at least one part of it had to have been as hot as the kettle, which at the same time was as hot as the water it contained. His eyes widened at the revelation, and he gave the tray back to Jyne while getting out of the room.

Robin heard Jyne ask where was he going, before following him, but he didn't answer and instead went straight to Miriel's room. He knocked loudly and waited for her to answer. She opened a few moments later, but Robin talked before she could.

"Metal tubes full of hot water around the box. We can make the water run so it warms the space equally."

"The temperature will be easier to regulate as well…" Miriel mumbled, with her eyes closed. Then she nodded "Yes, we should experiment with that."

"What?" Jyne asked, confused.

Robin looked at her, beaming.

"We're trying to make a heating box. Do you want to help us?"

She stepped back instinctvely at the sudden enthusiasm.

"No, thanks. Work to do. Bye."

And she left as fast as she could without running.

* * *

Robin waited until he was sure he couldn't hear anything and then got out of the secret passage. The window next to him was opened, and he could hear the soft wind blowing through the leaves. Some of them were already turning yellow, a sign of the colder seasons that were to arrive soon. He closed the window, making sure the chamber wouldn't grow cold.

Robin slowly turned the doorknob of the bedroom and entered, locking the door after him. The light of the fireplace greeted him, as well as a voice from the bed.

"So the tactician has finally decided to pay a visit to his commander."

Robin was relieved to hear that he sounded amused instead of angry.

"Sorry. I was engrossed with the experiment." Robin apologized. He took out a notebook from his robe and left it on the desk, and then left the robe itself on a chair.

Chrom shook his head while the tactician aproached the bed. "One day you two are going to forget how to breath while blowing something up."

"We don't blow things up." Robin pouted, getting on the bed "On purpose, anyway. But…"

Chrom noticed the change on his voice and the thumb that was slowly sliding over his neck, and felt a shiver. He gulped, expectant, and saw his lover smile.

"If you really want me to blow something, you just need to ask."

* * *

Frederick had always known that his lord's friendship with his tactician was strong. Even though they had found him in the middle of nowhere, a single battle against Plegian bandits had been enough for Chrom to decide that Robin was worthy of his trust. Despite the knight's initial suspicions, Robin proved to be a great friend even to Frederick himself. In his eyes, the problem wasn't that Chrom and Robin were close, but that the closeness seemed to have left Katerina behind.

Frederick was sharp and observant, always ready to detect any danger (or lesser annoyances) that could affect his lord, in order to help him. And while his behaviour was nothing out of the ordinary, he had expected him to be closer to his wife, and leave the tactician a bit behind for the time being. Excluding a couple of weeks after the ceremony, it hadn't been the case. So, for the good of the Halidom and the future heir that would follow, Frederick decided it was time to talk with the tactician himself to try to convince him to give Chrom and Katerina space. Or rather, try to get the tactician to convince Chrom to pay less attention to the tactician and more to his wife. The knight felt there was something innerently wrong with such a situation, but the happiness he had seen on his lord's face on the day of the wedding had seemed genuine.

Robin was in the canteen, stirring his food slowly with his fork, with a frown on his face. It was strange to see the tactician not inhaling his meal, even moreso when he was fond of the creamy rice with mushrooms they were having that day.

"Robin, could we talk in private?" Frederick aproached him with a smile.

When the few people that were still there saw the knight's smile, they ran away. Gaius threw himself out of the window and Stahl promised to go to the tactician's funeral before disappearing through the door as fast as he could.

Robin slowly looked up, wondering what was wrong exactly, but not feeling really confident after being scrutinized under such a serious look. The knight's face, however, softened a little after watching him closer. The tactician was paler than usual, with dark bags under his eyes. He looked exhausted, and a quick glance to the plate next to him proved he had barely touched his food.

"Are you feeling well?" Frederick asked, concerned. "You've felt sick lately."

Robin gave him a smile.

"Yeah, I'm just not hungry right now." His stomach decided to betray him and growl loudly at that exact moment. Robin sighed in defeat and pushed the plate away from him "Fine. I'm hungry, but this tastes weird and I think I'll throw up if I try to eat it."

Frederick raised his eyebrows. The vegetable risotto was one of his favourite meals and nobody else seemed to have trouble with it.

"I don't know, either." Robin raised his hands in defeat "I can't stomach most foods anymore and I've been sleeping worse than usual. I think it's the anxiety, because of the war and all that…"

"But the war ended more than a month ago."

"I know, but I'm usually more stressed after something happens rather than while it is happening. It think it's like…" He frowned, thinking "Like holding something very heavy. You force yourself to hold on as long as necessary, but once you no longer have that weight, it's like your body gives up all at once. Like how I'm able to be calm in battle no matter what, but the moment everything it's over and I'm alone…" He whispered, and then gave a long sigh.

Frederick nodded. He had never thought of something like that, but the comparison was clear enough. Robin then got up.

"Perhaps you should let a healer check your health."

"Lissa already did and found nothing." Robin sighed. Then he looked at him. "Well, you wanted to talk with me in private, right? Let's go."

"Where?"

"To my room. Unless you had another place in mind?" The tactician looked at him, wondering; but the knight shook his head and followed him.

They went to the furthest part of the barracks, near to the wall and the gardens. The less frequented place now had some more residents than Miriel and Robin. Libra found the silence and quietness better for praying, and Olivia felt it was easier to practice dancing knowing nobody was around. Tharja lived at the far end of the hallway, where nobody would bother her while she made her hexes.

When they entered the room, Robin sat heavily on his bed while offering Frederick the only chair of the room. The tactician looked tired.

"Well, what did you want to talk with me?"

Frederick suddenly remembered the reason why he was here, and his face became serious again. He cleared his throat.

"Robin, I am well aware of the close bond that connects you and milord. However, he now has a wife and needs to fulfill his duty to her as well. And I'm sure you know it as well. So I wanted your help in convincing him to pay more attention to his spouse."

"I told him he was being obvious." Robin muttered under his breath. He closed his mouth right after it and cautiously looked at Frederick. The knight's expression showed his confusion and surprise. He had heard it.

"What?" His voice was sharp. "What is that suposed to mean?"

Robin bit his lower lip and scratched his neck. He breathed deeply. Frederick was Chrom's retainer, and he was loyal and usually understanding. Keeping him in the dark was something Robin wanted to avoid for a while, but he was unsure of how he would react to the… news.

"I guess it's about time we tell you." Robin declared, sounding more defeated than sure of himself.

He then laid on his bed and put an arm over his eyes to protect them from the light that entered thought the window. He looked relaxed, but ready to strike at the same time. Like a wolf wondering if an intruder was dangerous or not.

"Lock the door." He ordered.

Frederick looked at him in confusion, but didn't move. Robin moved his arm to stare at him. His tired expresion had changed for one both wary and fierce. Frederick wondered what had he said exactly so that the quiet tactician was suddenly seeing him as a threat.

"Lock the door, Frederick." Robin ordered again.

The knight frowned. Robin's look had put him on ward, and while he consciously knew the tactician wasn't going to attack him, he couldn't help but feel uncomfortable closing his quickest way out. Still, he did as told. Once the click could be heard, Robin seemed to lose all his strength at once, and suddenly looked much less sure of himself. But before Frederick could ask, the white haired man slowly removed the glove of his left hand and extended the limb towards the knight.

Frederick took the hand and saw a ring with the mark of the Ylisse on his left hand. A ring Chrom had told him about, a ring that was supossed to be given to the person Chrom loved most.

"What is the meaning of this?!" The knight tried not to shout, but he found himself giving in to sudden outrage.

"Do you take me for the kind of person that would steal something like this?" Robin asked, calmly.

Frederick tried to compose himself. No, he didn't. Robin was an honest man that never wished for others' wealth. Him stealing a ring like that, a ring that almost nobody knew of, was unthinkable.

"No." He admited. But then…

"Then it means exactly what it means." The tactician simply said.

Fredericks lips turned into a thin line. Then he turned his back to Robin and headed for the door.

"They'll deny everything and you'll cause unnecesary stir." Robin said before he could open it. "Chrom, Katerina, Jyne and me, we all know about it. We all agreed to it. The wedding was arranged among the four of us, a… deal, you could say."

His lord, with a lover within days after holy marriage? Preposterous.

"Are you suggesting I just ignore all of this?" Frederick didn't know what he was going to do, but he had the need to do something about it. Anything.

Robin looked at him for a moment. Then he closed his eyes.

"Nobilities expectations would never let us marry the ones we love. So we were forced to find a middle ground between our duty and our happiness. We all agreed to it because it was the best for everyone, and we are content with the result. What is so wrong about that?"

Frederick looked back at the tactician. His eyes were a strange mix between sadness and happiness, fear and hope. And the knight realized he didn't have an answer to that.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A thousand thanks to my beta DestructionDragon360! Who knows how long it would have taken me to update this without your help...


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Posibly what you were waiting for but probably not what you were expecting.
> 
> Enjoy :)

 Frederick stood in at the side of the room while examining the papers he had in his hands and trying to ignore Chrom. It was harder than it should have been, given how his lord kept fidgeting with the papers he was supposed to be reading and shooting nervous glances at the knight. It was clear he wanted to ask him something, but didn't know how to approach the matter. And while the knight could have asked, he knew it was probably better to wait until his lord felt ready to talk.

Chrom finally cleared his throat and Frederick stopped staring at the same word he had for the last three minutes. 

"Frederick?"

"Yes, milord?"

Chrom stared at him seriously, then he seemed to lose some of his determination and looked down, staring at the papers. Then he frowned and looked at Frederick again. The knight silently prayed it wouldn't take long. It was ridiculous behaviour, and a little bit unnerving.

"Robin told me that he talked with you about… our relationship. And that you didn't take it too well…"

Chrom was trying to appear calm, but his tense expresion told Frederick his anxiety was about to explode. He knew well the possible consequences that their hidden relationship could have. But after looking at him in silence, Frederick simply sighed.

"It's not… something I expected from you, milord." He confessed.

Chrom looked down in shame, like a child who had just been told he shouldn't sneak around the kitchen to eat sweets at night. 

"So I decided to ask Katerina about it the next day." 

"What?!" Chrom got up from his sit, bewildered.

"I wanted to confirm what Robin had told me, that all of you knew about it and had agreed to it." The knight explained to his anxious lord. "Only then would I be able to think about it properly." 

"Oh." Chrom was silent a few seconds before he gathered the strength to talk again. "And… what was your conclusion?" 

Frederick left his papers in the desk and stared at Chrom.

"If I can be completely honest I… can't say I like it. It goes against everything a knight should stand for; it's a great dishonor, especially for the royal family." 

Chrom's hope seemed to sink with every word, and he had trouble keeping his composure. 

"But it's true that all of you seem happy about it, and that it's your only choice if you want to keep your loved ones close. You are not keeping it secret because of some scheme against the throne and, as much as I don't like thinking about it, it is highly doubtful you are the only ones in history to do something like this. My conclusion, milord, was simple: what do I know about anything, anyway? I only ask you to be cautious, if word got out, it would be a great scandal. And, of course, I will keep it a secret." 

Chrom looked at Frederick as if he had just remembered how to breathe, and gave a nervous laugh. 

"Thank you, Frederick. You are the best friend I could ask for."

Frederick smiled when he heard that and returned to his paper. They still had a lot to finish that day.

"Thank you, milord. It is an honor."

* * *

Robin's eyes opened slowly -thanks- to the sunlight filtering through the window. He groaned and turned, trying to flee from the light. It was a bad call: a wave of nausea rushed though his body the instant he did. He sat up fast and numbly searched for the wooden bucket that laid near the bed. It was empty, but not for long. Robin threw up bile and saliva, yet internally thanked the gods that it hadn't happened last night and he had managed to contain the dinner inside his body.

 He sighed, resigned, once he stopped, left the bucket on the floor and slowly got up to clean his face with the water jug. He remembered having told Frederick it was just anxiety, but it had been three weeks since he had started feeling nausea almost every morning. The relaxing infusions helped, but not as much as usual. It was starting to get ridiculous, and as much as he'd like to think it was anxiety, the problem just had to be somewhere else. The prospect of letting Lissa examine him again just in case seemed more appealing each day. He was the kind of person that could digest almost anything, yet lately not only would most foods upset his stomach, but he ended up throwing up half of what he managed to eat. He was starting to feel seriously weak.

 But it was so early the sun had barely risend, so Lissa wouldn't be around for several hours. He decided to take this chance to take a bath in the common bathroom of the barracks before someone else came. Then he could start the paperwork for the day. His stomach growled, but by then he knew better than checking the canteen on his own. He'd wait for someone to get out and ask them what food there was that day.

 

* * *

A knock on the door surprised the focused tactician. He tensed, and checked the paper he was writing; he hadn't stained it with ink by accident. He sighed in relief and got up to open the door. Chrom was there, smiling warmly at him. 

"Hello, Robin. How are you doing?" 

"Fine, I think." He smiled back. 

"Are you sure? Frederick and Lissa have told me you haven't been eating well. And you look tired." Chrom was frowning.

The tactician sighed. "I know... But Lissa already checked me and found nothing, so I can only wait for it to go on its own." He then realized he had been so engrossed in his papers he had actually forgotten to eat that day. One day his work would kill him.

The Exalt didn't look satisfied with that answer, but if the healer had already given her verdict, there was nothing else he could do. He had to restrain himself from stroking Robin's cheek to show his support, and then he remembered the other reason he was there.

"Katerina and I will be having some tea this afternoon. Will you come? Lissa, Frederick and Jyne will be there too."

Robin scratched his neck thoughtfully. If Jyne was there, it meant that no other servant would be around; so it was essentially a double date. It was a chance to relax in private, and basically the first time all of them would be together since the wedding. 

"Sure." Robin confirmed "I'd love to. I just have to finish these papers about the new pegasus knight recruits. Cordelia asked me to come up with a couple of strategies so they could start training in coordinated tactics. 

After the war, there were few pegasus knights left, and most of them had asked Cordelia to fill the role of captain; overseeing the training of the new additions, organizing patrols and making sure everything was working properly again as soon as possible. Robin didn't doubt she would end up as the new captain of the guard, and that she would be an amazing one. But Cordelia herself wasn't very comfortable with the idea yet, feeling as if she was stealing Phila's position, so he was careful not to mention it to her.

"Did something happen?" Chrom's voice returned the tactician to reality, and he looked at him confused.

He realized Chrom was looking at his room. The bed was a mess, and there were books and papers on the ground. The desk was the only place relatively clean, and there were still more papers than the Exalt was used to seeing. Robin was far from a Miriel-level of organization, but he could compete with Frederick on certain aspects. It was strange to see his room so unorganized.

"I… lost something; and I was looking for it."

"Was it important?"

"Yeah…" Robin sighed in defeat. "It's not the end of the world, I can always make another one. But it's annoying." 

Chrom's face showed both concern and interest.

"You made it?"

To his surprise, the tactician blushed softly and looked away. 

"It was a… hmm… notebook. With dates. Like a calendar."

Chrom frowned, suddenly sure he had seen something like that. Then he realized where. 

"Thin, with a brown leather cover and a blue fabric bookmark? You left it in my room some days ago and I put it on a drawer. I can get it after the tea." 

"Oh." It was Robin's only reaction. That certainly explained why he had been unable to find it anywhere in his room. "Thank you. Well, I'll see you there, then."

Chrom nodded and waved him goodbye. Robin closed the door and picked up some of the papers on the ground and put them on the bed. Then he sat back at the desk. The sooner he gave Cordelia her new tactics, the sooner he could go to that tea.

* * *

When Robin opened the door to Katerina's quarters, he was greeted by Jyne's whiny voice.

"You're laaaaaate!" She complained.

She was laying down on a long white couch, with her head on Katerina's lap and her feet on the armrest. She waved a hand lazily. Katerina giggled. 

"It's fine, Robin." She smiled at him "Jyne just brought us the tea." 

"You're welcome." The handmaiden added, smugly "I'd throw you a peanut for arriving late, but it wouldn't reach." 

"It would if you got up." The tactician replied with a smile, as he walked to sit on the other couch, next to Chrom. The Exalt kissed him softly on his cheek as a greeting.

"Pass." Jyne declared.

"Can we start? I'm starving." Lissa complained. She was sitting next to Frederick on a third, smaller couch, but they were far less informal than the two couples -of lovers-. 

"I thought you had already started. Now I feel bad for making you wait…" The tactician looked guilty. 

"I thought you just had to deliver the tactics to Cordelia." Frederick said, getting up and starting to serve the tea. Chrom's teacup was the first to be filled up. 

Once Jyne had brought everything, she had slumped on the couch and declared she was free until that night and wouldn't serve anyone except Katerina. The knight had frowned intensely at that lack of formality, but a quick nudge from Lissa, and Chrom's and Katerina's snicker stopped him from voicing his reprimands against the handmaiden. 

"Yes. But she also wanted me to think of possible variations under specific attacks so she could train them for unexpected reinforcements. I had to improvise a couple of alternatives on the spot…" The tactician sighed. 

He accepted the teacup Frederick was offering him, and then the man poured one for himself, having finished serving everyone else. Robin cautiously sniffed the drink and sipped it. It tasted wonderful and his body didn't seem to reject it. He sighed softly in relief. The food that had been brought was mostly sweet rolls and cupcakes, with some sandwiches with salmon and chicken and several cups full of different kinds of dried fruit and nuts. His stomach growled loudly. Throwing up was bad, but forgetting his meals due to work was even worse.

He grabbed a couple of raisins and some walnuts, and carefully chew on them. His stomach growled, asking for more, and he decided to be brave enough to try the salmon sandwich. Katerina made a comment about a history book she had been reading these days in her free time, and in less than ten seconds tactician and queen were engaged in an intense discussion about northern Feroxi tribes’ hunting techniques, and their evolution throughout the last three centuries. Jyne was horrified and pretended to yell. Chrom, amused. Lissa, _extremely_ amused. Frederick found himself having to hold back laughter as well due to the strange topic that had them so absorbed for hours.

* * *

 

"I'm glad you're feeling better." Lissa told Robin.

After several hours of peaceful conversation and a couple of matches at the game board Robin had developed with Virion (and with which he had crushed both Chrom and Lissa effortlessly), the sun started going down and it would soon be time for dinner. And their little get-together would be over. Robin didn't usually like these kinds of gatherings, but he found himself looking forward the next one. And the food had been great. 

"Not really." He admitted, sipping the last of his tea, and leaving the cup on the table. Then he closed his eyes and leaned against Chrom, who put an arm around his waist. "I still don't think I can eat something greasy. And most food at the barracks is some kind of heavy stew or creamy rice." 

The tactician didn't need to open his eyes to know that everyone in the room was frowning. Frederick suggested asking the cooks to make him some kind of special diet with less fatty meals, and Lissa agreed without much enthusiasm. Unless they could get to the root of the problem, it would simply continue; but she had been unable to find anything wrong with him. An upset stomach was the most likely possibility, but it had been three weeks since it had started, and he had never been ill for that long, not even during war. 

Robin also had the feeling that the cause was somewhere else. It wasn't just the food, but he slept badly too; even worse than usual. He was really tired all the time and frequently dizzy. He threw up half of what he managed to eat, and he was constantly hungry. But the worst part -for him- was probably the fact that his breasts were hurting him randomly and he couldn't bandage his chest as much as he wanted, so he had been forced to wear bigger shirts to hide them.  

He scratched his neck softly, wrinkling his nose. Headaches, nausea, hunger, insomnia, chest pain. It was almost as if…

As if…

…As… 

His body grew tense in an instant, eyes staring wide at the air, while his fingers unconsciously started to scratch his neck intensely, leaving red marks on his pale skin. 

No, no, no, no, no. It couldn't be. It couldn't be. But when had been the last time? Long, too long. Before the wedding? That seemed likely. But he kept a very strict check on dates, how could that happen? The notebook had everything clearly marked. The notebook. _The notebook!_ It was gone, vanished. No, not gone. In Chrom's chamber. He had left it there by accident. _I put it on a drawer_. So he couldn't have checked anything. He hadn't ever remembered to, with the insomnia, the paperwork and the experiment. That stupid fucking experiment.

He barely realized he was trembling and breathing fast before suddenly getting up and running outside of the room. He heard Chrom and Katerina say something, but the voices seemed to come from very far and he couldn’t make out the words. Getting to Chrom's chamber was more important at the moment. 

The Exalt had followed him, worried at the sudden change, and entered the chamber a few moments after him. Chrom found the tactician walking around the place with the notebook in  his shaking hands, turning the pages with such a strength some of them were partially torn off. He kept counting something over and over within the last three written pages, frantically mumbling to himself in Plegian.

Chrom approached him slowly, trying not to startle the anxious tactician who seemed to be getting worse by the minute. 

"Robin, what's wrong?" Chrom whispered, getting closer. 

Robin suddenly looked at him, as if he hadn't realized he had entered the chamber. He gave the Exalt an indecipherable look. Then he closed the notebook, threw it onto the fireplace, where it started to burn almost instantaneously; and ran into the bathroom.

Chrom managed to react when he saw him grab a close bucket and start to throw up. He got closer, kneeling next to the Plegian, worried. Robin was shaking like a madman, with tears flowing from his eyes and a panicked expression on his face. Chrom put an arm around him, desperately trying to comfort him, but not knowing where to start. 

"Love, what's wrong?" He insisted, but spoke softly. 

The tactician didn't say anything for a while, crying. Chrom bit his lip, feeling his own anxiety grow with Robin's silence. The Plegian man tried to breathe deeply and control his sobs, at least enough to talk, and he managed to after a couple of minutes. He didn't look at Chrom when he spoke, his lips trembling.

"I'm pregnant." He rasped, his voice hoarse due to the damage of the acid on his throat. 

The Exalt stared at him astonished, but also starting to feel an unknown excitement. He was going to be a father? But before his train of thoughts could keep going on, Robin started to throw up again. Chrom went back to reality and saw that the tactician was everything but excited. He looked anxious and frankly terrified. Chrom gently massaged his back and waited for him to stop. Once it looked the tactician had nothing else to get out, he put the bucket away and helped him clean himself. 

The tactician was sobbing and shaking, curled into a ball of anxiety and fear as he hid his face in his hands. Chrom slowly started to hug him, and softly cuddled him against his chest. As childish as it would seem, the soft movement helped Robin calm down, and Chrom actually found it rather endearing and intimate. Robin hugged him back and hid his face against his shoulders, shaking terribly. It broke Chrom’s heart to see him in such a panicked state, especially because of something generally seen as positive. 

“You can stop it with you want.” He assured him. 

Knowing that he could have a child with the man he loved most filled him with happiness, and the perspective of losing them so early felt disheartening, but it clearly wasn't worth forcing the man through months of panic attacks. Not to mention than the stress could make him miscarriage anyway. 

Chrom felt Robin shake less and his sobs -had- lessen, but the grip of his hands on his back tightened. Robin didn’t know what to say. How could he explain the anxiety he felt about the way his body was going to change in the coming months? The anxiety and disgust he had felt every time he had thought of what had happened once he became a teenager? 

“It's not that I don't want to.” He whispered, sniffling -his nose- “It's just... I don't know what to do...” His voice cracked and Crom instinctively hugged him tighter, trying to provide comfort.

Robin kept talking “It's too much... too sudden... I don't know what to do... I don't know... I don't know...”

His voice was lost in the silence of the bathroom while he kept trembling. Chrom separated himself slightly from Robin, cleaned his tears and kissed his forehead. He felt the tactician relax a bit at the soft touches, and he kept slowly stroking his hair for a while.

Two soft knocks on the door of the room distracted them both.

“Is everything alright, milord?” Fredericks voice sounded through the wooden door of the chamber. 

“One moment.” Chrom said loudly. 

The knight didn’t answer back, but he knew he would wait.

The Exalt turned his attention back to his lover, who looked miserable and terribly exhausted. He softly stroked his pale face, watching him close his eyes. It pained Chrom to see him like this.

"Robin, I think you’re too stressed to think properly...” He paused, waiting for a reply. The tactician wasn’t fond of people criticizing his possible difficulties thinking well enough under obvious amounts of stress; especially if they were right. But Robin didn't even open his eyes at that. Chrom bit his lip, more worried than before “So, how about we take a long -and nice- hot bath, have some warm relaxing infusion and go to sleep? You’ll be able to think better -about this- tomorrow.”

“...Ok.” Robin agreed, but it sounded more like he was too tired to complain than that he actually cared about it at all.

Chrom carried him in his arms and brought him into the wardrobe, which was as big as the bathroom. He left him on some soft pelts and covered him with a blanket, and told him he would be right back. Making sure both the door to the wardrobe and the door to his room were closed, the Exalt opened the door that led to the hallway. 

As he had expected, Frederick was there. But also Katerina, Jyne and Lissa. Much to his surprise, his sister tried to sneak in the moment he opened the door.

“Let me go, Chrom! I have to examine him!” She complained the moment he tried to stop her.

“He’s fine.” Chrom replied, but sounded less sure that he would have liked “He just needs to rest until tomorrow.”

Lissa frowned “I'm the healer. Let me in, Chrom.”

“Tomorrow.” Chrom insisted. “Please, Lissa. He won't be worse, and he's too nervous right now.”

Lissa didn't like one bit that his brother was supposedly trying to act as a cleric at the moment, but it was clear that he wouldn't risk agitating the tactician more.

“I’ll be here first thing in the morning.”

“He needs to rest, so...” 

“Morning.” She wasn’t going to budge.

“Alright. But not too early...” He asked her.

Lissa frowned, which told him she wasn’t happy about it, but she would accept.“Tell me immediately if something happens!”

“Of course.” Her brother promised.

“Is there something we can do...?” Katerina asked him then, worried about her friend.

Chrom looked at her and remembered her, Jyne and Frederick's presence. The knight was waiting orders.

“Actually, yes. We need a hot bath. And a relaxing infusion that can help him sleep.” 

Frederick bowed and left immediately. The three women left as well, still looking concerned. Chrom went back into the room and checked on Robin. He was in the same position Chrom had left him, looking like he could nod off at any moment. He waited next to his lover until he heard knocks on the door again, and he left the wardrobe to open door. Several servants were waiting with buckets full of hot water and promptly entered the bathroom to get the bath ready. He waited until they were finished and had left. Then he took Robin out of the wardrobe and brought him to the bathroom. 

"Is the water hot enough?" Chrom asked.

Robin blinked, as if he had just woken up from a dream, and then he took out a hand and touched the surface. He gave him a small and tired smile.

"Acceptable."

Chrom smiled back, kissed him again on the forehead and helped him undress before undressing himself. They both got inside the water, and Chrom cleaned his hair and his back and kissed him everywhere he could while they relaxed in the water. The rare occasions they bathed together, Robin never let Chrom bathe him like that, embarrassed and knowing he was fully capable of such a thing himself. But he let Chrom pamper him this time.

Once the water started to grow "just" warm (but still hot in Chrom's opinion), they got out and dressed in the first comfortable sleep clothing Chrom managed to find in his wardrobe. Being taller than Robin meant everything was big for the tactician, but he didn't seem to mind the cozy and baggy clothes. They sat down next to the coffee table where the infusion had been left before, with some cupcakes, nuts, and small custard tarts. Chrom noticed Robin was slowly sipping the infusion while staring at the food with distrust.

"You don't have to eat." He assured him. 

"I know…" The tactician mumbled. He still took one of the custard tarts and slowly chewed on it "But if I don't eat anything, I'll wake up at night, hungry." He sighed. 

Once both of them finished drinking, they got to bed. Robin fell asleep within seconds on Chrom's chest, exhausted but relaxed and feeling Chrom's soft hand playing with his hair.

* * *

_There was a young girl in front of him. She was smiling bright, her blue hair crowned with a golden tiara that still seemed too big for her head. She ran towards Robin and hugged him tightly, and the tactician hugged her back._

_The scene changed and she was even younger, playing with a loud boy that kept shaking a branch as a weapon. Then she was older, and Chrom was teaching her how to wield a sword._

_He saw Katerina with the child, barely three, in her arms, in_ _the carriage next to him while they went through the city as part of some festivity. Marth fell from the sky while Risen attacked. The girl giggled, happy, because Robin had told her a secret in Plegian. She played with his battle figurines making strategies. Chrom fell to the ground, dead, with a dagger of electricity in his chest. The blue haired girl was asleep in Chrom's arms, who looked at her with pride and affection. She was training with other soldiers. She was sad because her father had to go to war again; while Katerina did her best to comfort her. Marth and Chrom, fighting one against the_ _another in the arena with moves that seemed strangely similar. A baby on in his arms with the Brand of the Exalt on her left eye._  

_A single name resonating, over and over._


	11. Chapter 11

Robin opened his eyes slowly. He woke up in a warm bed with Chrom's arm around him protectively, and wearing the softest nightclothes he had touched in his life. He slowly rubbed his face with one of the long sleeves. It felt great.

He sighed. He still felt tired, but Chrom had been right. The shock and the potential dysphoria he could suffer with the body changes had made him panic the day before. He still wasn't very excited about the perspective of having a child, but didn't really feel a strong rejection either. As long as Chrom and the rest still treated him with respect, he felt he could endure it. But he also knew it was only the start of a very annoying pregnancy that was already starting to affect his health. Robin groaned.

Chrom mumbled something and opened his eyes, blinking at the sunlight. He stroked Robin's hair on autopilot, his brain still taking the necessary steps to wake up. Robin almost giggled at that.

"Morning, love." He kissed Robin's hair.

"Morning." He answered, hugging him back.

They went quiet. Robin had the feeling Chrom wanted to ask him about yesterday, but didn't know how to approach the topic given the panicked reaction he had. The tactician, however, was thinking about his dream; or trying to. He seemed to have forgotten all of it in his slow awakening, and he had the feeling it was the last piece of a puzzle he had wondered about for months. It was frustrating having the information so close, yet watching it slip through his fingers while he could do nothing about it. There was only one thing he remembered clearly. He put his face against Chrom's shoulder.

"If it's a girl, I want to call her Lucina."

Chrom looked at him surprised, but clearly excited.

"You’ll do it?"

"Yes, yes. You can start smiling now."

Chrom kissed his hair instead, but Robin felt his lips curve upwards. Then the tactician frowned and tried to breathe slowly, feeling the first wave of nausea of the day. Once it was over, he sighed. Chrom looked at him, worried.

"Get used to it." Robin breathed deeply "This is going to suck and we're just starting, trust me."

"I'm here for anything you need." The Exalt promised him.

"You'd better be."

Then he started touching again the fabric of his nightclothes. Chrom noticed it.

"You really like that."

Robin stopped and felt himself blush a little in embarrassment. "Yeah, it's really soft."

"You can have it if you want."

"Really?!" The tactician's voice had sounded more excited than he had planned.

Chrom found it adorable. "Of course. I have more anyway. But it may be better to make you one smaller."

"No, no, it's fine! It's more comfortable sleeping in bigger clothes."

A strong knock on the door startled both of them. And it didn't come from the chamber's door, but the bedroom's. Chrom and Robin looked at each other in panic for a few seconds, thinking a random servant had entered the chambers, before a voice came through the wood.

"It's me, Chrom. Open up!"

Right, Lissa had told Chrom she'd be there the next day to check on Robin. The Exalt walked to the door and let her enter. She was already fully dressed, despite being a little early, and had brought with her a staff, some potions and several medical tools. But Robin, who was paler than usual, talked before she could approach him.

"I'm going to vomit in, like, five seconds."

Chrom was the first one to react, running to the bathroom area and bringing a bucket. Robin threw up almost as soon as he had it between his hands. Lissa watched with a frown, carefully examining Robin. He seemed to have lost some weight that last month, despite not being at war anymore.

"Chrom, leave. I'm going to examine him." Lissa said very seriously once Robin had finished and cleaned himself.

"Not necesary." The tactician replied, giving the dirty bucket to Chrom.

Lissa's frown deepened and she stared at Robin. "I am the cleric, and I will—"

"I'm pregnant, Lissa." He interrupted her.

Robin could almost see painted on her face how her train of thought brutally crashed and the pieces of the puzzle slowly fell into place in the ten seconds she simply stared at the wall with her mouth opened.

" _Oh_."

She looked at Robin and then at Chrom, who was blushing and looked like he didn't know if he should feel nervous or embarrassed, and then at Robin again. The tactician decided it was time for him to take charge.

"Can you bring me a ginger tea with pegasus tail?" He figured the small trip to the kitchen would help her process the news a bit better.

"Sure, but… Pegasus tail is probably too strong for you right now." She gave him a worried look.

"Use the leaves instead of the flower. They're milder."

"I've never heard of that. Are you completely sure?"

"My mother was a midwife, and I had to help her from time to time. I know about this as much as you, if not more. No offense. It will be fine if you use the leaves."

Both Chrom and Lissa stared at him in surprise when he said that, but the cleric nodded and left the room to get the infusion. Chrom got closer to Robin and sat next to him, putting an arm around his waist while Robin leaned on his chest. The Exalt's excitement at the news had passed, and he could see clearly how tired Robin looked like even without the anxiety of the previous day. His face was thinner, and while his muscles had never been as developed as the ones of the more physically focused members of the Shepherds, he could see his arms were thinner than usual. Chrom kissed his temple and held held his hand.

"You look tired."

"I am." Robin admitted. "I guess not eating for a month and half does that to you."

Chrom frowned and rested his head on Robin's shoulder, wondering for the first time if this was truly a good idea.

"You look like you're going to a funeral." He heard Robin say. "Throwing up always makes me exhausted. Don't put on that face, I'll be fine. Now we can find something I can actually eat."

Chrom nodded, still feeling a little worried about him, but he also felt something warm inside. The feelings of pride and happiness he had briefly felt last night when Robin told him the news were surfacing again. The Halidom was in peace, everyone was recovering, the council wasn't on his back anymore because he had finally married and he was going to have a child with the person he actually loved. And Robin, if uncomfortable and weak, didn't look like he was going to suffer another breakdown. Chrom let himself feel happy with the news.

"You're giggling like a kid." The tactician's voice brought him back to reality. He was staring at him, with a smaller smile on his face as well.

"I know." The Exalt answered. "I'm just… really happy." He felt his face growing warmer again. He had the feeling a part of him didn't completely believe it yet.

Lissa returned a few moments later with the herbal tea, and gave it to the tactician. Robin slowly started to sip it, making sure his stomach was able to hold it. She sat at the other side of the tactician and held his free hand as if she was giving him her support.

"Robin, are you okay?" She asked, very seriously.

"I'm tired and possibly malnourished."

"I know, I can fix that. I mean, are you mentally okay?"

Robin drank a little bit more from his mug while noticing how both Lissa and Chrom there were grabbing his hand and shoulder a bit tighter in support. He couldn't blame them for being so worried after seeing the panic he had went through the last day, especially when not even war had been enough to make him freak out that much.

"Yeah. I was shocked, mostly. I also have… very vague memories of my mother making me promise her I would never have children." He frowned, trying to recall the faint event. "But she never told me why, or at least I don't remember it."

"Perhaps because of some kind of hereditary illness?" Chrom tried.

Lissa frowned. "That would be strange. You're healthy. Healthier than the rest of the Shepherds, in fact."

Chrom looked at his sister surprised, but Robin shrugged.

"I don't hate this or anything, I just never thought about it and it was sudden. I'll live." He assured her.

"Alright. Also, I'll have to tell this to Frederick, Katerina and Jyne. And that means I'll have to tell them about you."

"Sure. Use the pegasus guards example I told you."

"Pegasus guards?" Chrom asked.

"There's some pegasus guards who are transgender. Like me, but the opposite; people who were treated as males but are actually women. And the animals notice it, so they accept them as riders. And since pegasi can be quite picky about their riders, apparently the Ylissean pegasus guard decided they couldn't lose potential recruits, so they accepted them. But it's the only place I've found transgender people are accepted and recognized in Ylisse."

"That's why you're nervous around pegasi? Because they don't like you?" Lissa asked.

Robin groaned. "More like they try to kill me. The first and last time I approached a pegasus without a woman close to me, it kicked me in the head and left me unconscious for three days. If for some unholy reason I have to do something at the pegasus stables, I make sure Sumia and Cordelia are as close as possible. Those animals look at me with daggers in their eyes."

The pegasi dislike for men was well known, but that sounded extreme. Not even Chrom ever had such a big problem with the animals. Robin just shrugged at him. There wasn't anything he could do about it.

Lissa questions seemed to be over, and looked at him and nodded, satisfied with his answers. She got up from the bed and walked a couple of steps before turning to them again.

"Chrom, come here." She ordered her brother.

He looked at her confused, but obeyed and approached her. She threw herself onto his arms and hugged him strongly while smiling.

"Robin's not feeling well enough to suffer me, so you'll have to bear with this instead! Congrats, Chrom, Robin!"

Chrom blushed and hugged her back, while Robin just sipped his drink in silence, but smiling as well. Given that Chrom had married Katerina and she was the one expected to bear a child, Lissa's mind hadn't thought of any other possible candidate to give birth to her brother's child. Her brother's. She was going to be an aunt!

"Ok! I'll tell Frederick, Katerina and Jyne!" Lissa said, smiling widely. "And he'll bring you breakfast soon."

"Fine." Robin agreed "But I want to eat in peace. Nobody come here until an hour has passed."

Lissa giggled. "You know how Jyne is going to react."

"Too well." Robin sighed.

Lissa left and an edible breakfast was soon brought to Chrom's chamber. Then Lissa took Frederick with her and they went looking for Jyne and Katerina, and took them to a private place to deliver the news.

Robin was actually feeling good enough to get up after drinking the infusion and resting a little, so he did, stretched and took Chrom's hand.

"Come on, future dad, let's eat something." Chrom smiled at his words and let him guide them to the tray of food that had been set on the small table in the room. Chrom sat next to him and softly kissed his temple, which earned him a smile from the tactician.

Lucina sounded like a good name.

* * *

When the hour Robin had asked for had passed, they all went to Chrom's chamber. Both of them were sitting on a couch, Robin reading a book while Chrom shot glances at the paperwork that was waiting for him on the desk, not really wanting to get up and do it.

Chrom tensed when he heard them enter, both startled that a servant would just enter without waiting for permission and conscious that if someone saw them there could be trouble. But Robin didn't even look up from his book, having correctly guessed that Frederick and Jyne had taken complete control of whatever schedule was reserved for that room; probably for the whole day.

The tactician gasped in surprised when Jyne suddenly ran to him, picked him up and twirled him around, much to everyone's astonishment.

"Robiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin, you're amazing, and I love you, and I'd kiss you if you wouldn't stab me right after!" She declared.

"Put me back on the ground this instant or my elbow will 'accidentally' land on your face." He declared, unamused.

The handmaiden did as told, but kept staring at him while giggling foolishly, as if she had won a lifetime supply of meat. Robin rolled his eyes.

"I thought we all agreed to do what we had." He replied to her.

"Of course!" She said "Buuuuuuuut now we have an alternative that's much better!"

"For you."

"Guilty as charged!" Jyne admitted without the slightest shame.

"What are you talking about?" Chrom asked, voicing everyone else's confusion.

Robin sighted. "Since apparently I'm the one that's going to bring the next Exalt into the world, there's no longer any need for our married couple here to do their duty as such." That was the translation.

Chrom and Katerina's faces reddened at the implied meaning of those words. Robin just sighed again and sat back next to Chrom. He looked at the sky through the window, pensive for a few seconds.

"I'm fairly sure I'm supposed to be at a meeting with Lyonel right now."

"That jerk? Forget him." Jyne replied, annoyed.

Katerina didn't say anything, but her expression clearly stated that she agreed with the sentiment. The rest of the Ylisseans present thought similar as well. Lyonel was infamous for being quite intolerant with anyone that wasn't from the capital or around. He disapproved of Katerina for being from a lowly noble family, and probably because one of his nieces had been elegible for Chrom to marry. And he greatly disapproved of the tactician for being Plegian, which only made him wear his dark robes more proudly. He had even been terrible to Emmeryn as well in her reigning years, not so unsubtly trying to be regent while she was younger. He wasn't loved by most, but his lineage gave him a powerful position in the Council.

"Don't even think of going. You need to rest." Chrom warned, serious.

"I will inform the Council of your absence." Frederick guaranteed.

"Don't worry, I don't feel like going there only to throw up on his papers." Robin shrugged, but then he stared at the air and squinted. "Or do I…?"

"If you do, you'll have my full support and will be my hero forever." The handmaiden declared.

"I won't complain too much." Lissa admitted, frowning.

"Tempting…" The tactician admitted, but then saw Chrom and Frederick's stern faces "But I guess it's better if I rest."

Frederick and Chrom left for the meeting and the rest started talking about how to proceed from then on. Katerina had to start faking the symptoms as soon as possible, while Jyne helped her keep up the farce. They also needed a calm place where they could be for the last months of gestation with as few people as possible. It would be impossible to avoid a very serious scandal if the _male_ tactician of the Shepherds and Exalt's close friend happened to give birth to a child with the Brand of the Exalt and potentially suspicious dark blue hair. And Robin liked quietness, avoiding civil wars and being around as few people as possible.

Lissa suggested the eastern castle, where they had tried to bring Emmeryn after the assassination attempt. It was small, and at the moment had the minimum people needed to run it: a cook, the constable, half a dozen of servants, and two small troops of infantry and cavalry. They were all greatly trusted, since they had complete control of the place most of the time. The palace was mostly a summer residence, after all; and Ylissean royalty was there scarcely, if at all. Robin liked that. He still wanted to check if they were open minded and discreet enough, and asked for a complete report of every single one of them. That loyalty and trust was a good start; in the worst possible scenario, they could send them back to the capital for the time being while bringing their own people with them.

Once Chrom was back from the meeting, he and Robin stayed in the room together the rest of the day, and the tactician slept in the royal chambers again. But the next day, he went back to the barracks and carried on with his usual duties the best he could on his condition. It would be strange if he completely disappeared from the Shepherds’ barracks to stay constantly at the castle all of a sudden.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while, but here you have the next part! And GOD it was so hard to do. I fully rewrote this three times!


	12. Chapter 12

It wasn't long before the temperatures started to fall and the wind started to blow with such strength most archers had trouble shooting and most pegasus riders had trouble flying. The change of seasons wouldn't have been noteworthy beyond finishing the last harvesting and watching the leaves turning orange and yellow if the climate hadn't gone crazy for several weeks, showing warm, sunny days that alternated with cold downpours almost on a daily basis. The farmers barely had time to gather everything from the fields before it could rot away, saving the harvest, and the country from food shortage that winter.

A week and a half of unstable weather had passed when Robin opened his eyes in his room one morning and instantly knew he was sick. His head hurt, he had trouble breathing through his nose, his throat hurt, and he was shivering despite being covered with a couple of thick blankets. He groaned and tried to bury himself into his sheets, but it was useless. He kept feeling cold.

He wondered for a few seconds whether having a headache and a sore throat was worse than the usual morning sickness or not before his body decided to give him the answer: both at once. He got out of the bed in a second and ran to the bathroom. Once he finished and had cleaned himself, he put on his warmer usual clothes and sat on the bed, weighing if he should stay inside a few more minutes to rest.

A knock on the door distracted him, and he suddenly remembered Lissa went to his room to check up on him every morning before the rest of the Shepherds woke up. He grimaced at the noise, but got up and went to see her.

"Morn—!" She gasped when she saw him, and stared worried at him. "Gods, Robin, you look awful! What happened?"

"Do I?" He asked, briefly confused.

Then he realized he hadn't even tried to wash his face or comb his hair yet. And that he had put his shirt inside out. And that his face was either paler because of his morning sickness or darker because of the fever. Or both at once, if it was possible. Was it even possible? He decided he wasn't going to think about it.

"Bed, now." Lissa stated, interrupting his thoughts.

"It's just a cold." He replied, but got away from the door and let her in. "I don't feel that bad."

"I'm the cleric here." She replied, frowning at how suddenly everyone around her insisted on knowing illnesses better than her.

She closed the door after her and took his wrists to check the pulse once he laid down. She also put a hand on his forehead to check his temperature and asked him about what hurt and how.

"Mhm, I think you  _ do  _ have a small cold. You should be fine if you rest for a couple of days." She declared.

"As I said." He grumbled.

Lissa frowned at that, but didn't say anything. Instead, she got up from the chair she had sat and checked the papers over it.

"There is a council meeting in a couple of hours, isn't it? I'll give the papers about your report to Frederick so he can replace you." She promised.

"What? Why? I can go, I'm not that sick!"

"You still need to recover lost weight and I know for a fact that you are working more than you should instead of resting like I told you to. And your work is something Frederick did well enough before you arrived, Ylisse didn't collapse before you came to the Shepherds."

"But with me, things are better." He replied. "I can go to the meeting and then come back here to rest."

"Frederick is good enough." She argued, frowning at him.

"And I'm better!"

" _ Good. Enough _ ."

"Fine, fine! I'll stay here all day bored out of my mind!"

Lissa got up and intentionally patted his abdomen. "You need to take care of yourself, not only for your sake."

"I know, but my statement still stands." He replied.

"Don't you have anything to do here?" She asked, surprised.

"I've almost finished the tactics book I'm reading, and with the fever I can't focus enough to play strategy games with Virion, much less train or something like that for obvious reasons. And while I'll probably take a nap, I'm  _ not _ sleeping the whole day."

She smiled at him, more understanding. "I can bring you a book from the library, if you want."

"Then bring me the next volume of the tactic collection I'm researching rig—"

"No work!"

Robin glared at her, but Lissa frowned back with equal stubbornness. He gave up.

"Wyvern Wars, volume four. Ask Sumia about it."

Lissa frowned slightly at the title, but if Sumia knew about it, it was unlikely to be a dry explanation about strategic war. She nodded and left the room with the papers for Frederick.

 

* * *

One hour later, Jyne entered Robin's room without knocking. She frowned when she saw him sitting on his desk reading the strategy book. He looked a little startled by her interruption, but didn't complain. Since she was the one that would bring him food he could eat, it was better if she simply sneaked into his room as fast as possible, without anyone seeing her. Robin had told her about the secret corridors that travelled through the castle walls so she could avoid the Shepherds without having to go through the canteen.

"Our cleric said no work for you." She announced to the tactician while putting the food and drink on the desk.

"I had to do something while I waited for you to arrive, and I wasn't going to try to sleep knowing you could wake me up at any moment and give me a heart attack."

He took the cup with the infusion and stopped to smell it once he realized it wasn't tea.

"Valerian with ginger. It will help you sleep and fight that cold." She explained. "Chrom almost went crazy when Lissa told him you were sick until she explained it was just a cold. It was actually adorable."

Robin rolled his eyes. It was just a cold; he wasn't dying. Then he tried the infusion and grimaced. It tasted awful.

"Are you sure this is edible?"

"Lissa's the boss." Jyne shrugged, but looked relieved she wasn't the one drinking that.

Robin decided to eat the apple instead, and leave the drink to cool until he could drink it in one sitting.

"Why did it take you so long? I’m actually hungry, despite the morning sickness."

"Lissa was waiting for Sumia to take the book out of the library for you." The handmaiden took out a book from her small side bag and gave it to Robin.

He grabbed it and looked interested at the cover, nodded to himself and set it over the strategy book. He kept eating while telling Jyne the plot of the saga. She was interested until she knew it was eight books long.

"Couldn't the author tell the story in just one book?" She asked with a grimace. Se didn't dislike reading, but that was too much. 

Robin snorted.

"Then I guess you won't be interested in the Mad Tales of a Bloodthirsty Falcon Knight saga Sumia is reading right now."

"Sounds fine. How many books you're talking about?"

"Thirty-seven."

"You  _ are _ shitting me!" She looked horrified.

But Robin shook his head with a grin on his face. "Ask her about it if you don't believe me."

Jyne looked like she was actually considering asking Sumia about it the half an hour it took Robin to finish eating. Then she left the room with the dishes and reminded him to rest. Robin waved a hand in her direction, dismissively.

The drink had been awful, but it had helped him warm up and he was feeling tired again, so he closed the window to darken the room, took out the robes and put them over the blankets and then got inside the bed. He fell asleep a few minutes later.

 

* * *

When Chrom knocked the door of Robin's room, he didn't expect Sumia to open it. She seemed to be equally surprised for a few seconds before smiling and stepping aside to let him enter. The tactician was sitting at his bed with a blanket over is legs, drinking some tea Sumia seemed to have brought, while the pegasus knight was using the only chair in the room. Robin lazily greeted Chrom doing a strange wave with the fingers of his free hand.

"You've come to see Robin, right?"

"Yes." He answered. "Lissa told me this morning he was sick."

"I'm fine!" Robin rolled his eyes and stared at him. "I took a nap and when I woke up I didn't even have a fever anymore! I was reading until Sumia came an hour ago to keep me company."

"We were talking about Wyvern Wars! I got the book for him this morning and he's already read half of it. You read incredibly fast." She told Robin, amazed.

But Robin just groaned. "It's easy to read fast when everyone around you doesn't let you do anything else."

"You're sick. You need to rest." Chrom sternly told him.

Robin grunted, but didn't reply. Then Sumia, looking slightly restless, announced it was her turn to feed the pegasus and left, while trying to avoid Chrom's gaze.

"Feel free to come back tomorrow and save me from staring at the walls of my room." Robin said just before she left.

Sumia giggled. "I'll give Lissa the next book in the morning, and see if I can see you before dinner."

"Please and thank you."

She left the room, closing the door behind her, and Robin sighed.

"Poor girl. I hope she can get over her crush soon. She deserves better."

Hearing that made Chrom stare at him in surprised. "What? Crush?"

Robin stared back, unfazed. "Yes, crush. On you. That's why she left the moment you stepped inside."

"She… has a crush on me?!"

"And Cordelia. Incredibly obvious ones, too."

" _ What?! _ "

Robin looked at Chrom and, realizing his surprise was absolutely genuine, he shook his head and took a sip from his teacup.

"I think I'm starting to understand how you didn't realize my also very obvious crush until I had you pinned against the bed."

Chrom blushed when he heard that, and frowned at the tactician.

"You didn't seem to notice mine, either." He complained.

"You didn't seem to notice your own."

That didn't seem to go too well. Chrom decided to change the subject.

"And what do you mean it's an obvious crush?"

"Well," Robin started, "besides the fact that during the war against Plegia they took every excuse they could to talk to you, and that they were always trying to get your attention to what they did so you praised them, and that when I paired you up in battle they seemed to be going to explode in excitement and nervousness at once, and—"

"Ok, fine, I get it!" Chrom interrupted, blushing furiously. Listening to how evident their behaviour had been, and how oblivious he had been in turn, made the explanation incredibly embarrassing to the new king.

Robin had to stop himself from smiling, amused. "Well, besides all that, the day after your proposal to Kate, she came to my room to cry, and I had to comfort her and convince her she wasn't a bad person for feeling jealous. At least, until she hit someone with a chair." He made a brief pause. "It was awkward, but she was too upset to notice anything strange with me."

Chrom frowned at the door, looking worried. "I did notice recently she had been avoiding me a little, but I didn't think she would be that upset."

"She's better, and she's trying, but it still hurts her to be around you without something important going on. That's why I tried to tell her to talk with Gaius or Frederick, so she could get over you and cheer up."

"…Are you playing matchmaker with my soldiers?"

"I would never! I'm just trying to help!" Robin replied, but the soft blush of embarrassment on his cheeks told Chrom otherwise.

Chrom raised his eyebrows at the tactician.

"Anyway, she's slowly getting better. It will go away on its own soon, hopefully."

Chrom sighed and sat on the bed next to the tactician, leaning his head on his shoulder and hugging his waist.

"Well, I'm glad to see you are resting like Lissa said you needed."

"I know my limits and try not to cross them, unlike Frederick."

The comparison made Chrom smile. Robin was still a little upset at their insistence on taking care of him. He kissed his hair.

"I hope you know you're amazing." He declared.

Robin blushed and stared at him, confused and surprised.

"Wha…? Why… where’s this coming from all of a sudden?!"

"It's the truth. One I think you should hear more frequently."

The tactician was lost for words and just sat there, blushing intensely. Chrom chuckled and kissed him again. He grabbed his hand softly, and Robin pressed his, accepting his words. He felt Chrom's smile against his neck.

* * *

Katerina's acting sick for several days and Lissa's supposed check up after a week and half were the start of the quickly spreading news about the royal pregnancy. Once the Shepherds knew about it, they insisted on throwing a proper celebration in the barracks, and basically forced Chrom to eat dinner with them and stay awake most of the night drinking. There were far more jokes about how  _ fast _ Katerina had gotten pregnant he had thought there would be. But then again, what could he expect from Vaike?

Robin skipped the celebration, not feeling like vomiting all over everyone's dinner. No one bothered him too much about it. His recent cold and the fact that he seemed to have a sensitive stomach after the war were reason enough to let him rest. And that, for once, he was willingly taking care of himself, instead of having the Shepherds pester him until he stopped. The tactician did tell Lissa to congratulate Chrom for him when she went with the others, and she almost snorted at the irony.

It was two days later after that night Robin decided he had to talk with Miriel, and left his room a little after dinner to go see her. She didn't seem surprised when she opened the door and saw him standing there, and let him enter. Robin sat on one of the two chairs of her room, and briefly wondered if he should think of getting another one himself before speaking.

"Miriel, there is something important I have to tell you, but it can wait if you are busy right now."

She adjusted her glasses, thinking. "I'm finishing a paper on my latest experiment. If you could wait a few more minutes, you would have my full attention."

Robin nodded and gave her space at her desk. She continued writing with elegant lettering while Robin started fidgeting with the golden cords of his robes.

"You're behaviour indicates you are distressed. Is it because of the news or because how you believe it will affect me?" She said, looking at him, once she finished.

Robin stopped and looked away. He pressed his lips and looked around the room. Then he sighed.

"The second one, I guess… It's not bad news, but… it's delicate."

"I see. I'm listening."

"Well… Do you remember that day when I got very badly hurt during battle and… I didn't let anyone help me except Lissa and you?"

"Indeed. Since Plegians have explored gender identity to a much greater degree than Ylisse, you were understandably worried about the Shepherds reaction if it was found that your physical physiognomy is not the one of an average Ylissean male, and how they would treat you after it was found out. It was a wonderful discovery to me; neither my mother nor I ever thought of gender beyond what the body seems to show. But, of course, limiting your knowledge to something as restricted as the human body would be—"

"Yes, yes! I know, but that's know what I'm here for!" Robin interrupted her, fearing she would start rambling. "What I meant is…"He sighed and decided to be blunt. "I have breasts. And the whole set, really. Yes?"

"Indeed." Miriel replied. Even if her face didn't show clearly her feelings, Robin could see she was starting to feel confused about what he was trying to say.

"Alright. And you know I've been sick recently. Like, sick for  _ weeks _ , longer than a month and half." She nodded, worried this time. "And that the Queen has also feeling sick for some time know…"

Miriel fell silent several minutes. Robin waited until she was done thinking, not wanting to interrupt her. He tried to appear calm, but the fast beating of his chest and his fidgeting hands betrayed him.

"However," Miriel started talking, startling Robin "The Queen's… 'sickness' did not start until a month after yours."

"I… did not know the reason for my sickness yet back then…" He explained.

"I see… That implies it is not the Queen that is actually expecting a child, but you. That would suggest the fact that she is, for some reason, covering for you. But that would make no sense, for there is no relationship between both of you besides your first meeting at the ball, therefore the link must lie somewhere else."

Robin sat in silence, staring at the walls of her room while she closed her eyes in deep concentration.

"The Queen is not expecting a child, but you are. One you must hide, but she must not. Or, even, she must have. Therefore,  _ you _ are the one that is bringing the new heir of the Halidom to the world, which would make you Chrom's lover." Robin was relieved to hear her tone had no bite, but Miriel didn't stop there. "It would be impossible for her to cover you like that unless she is fine with that fact, and it would also be impossible to hide this properly unless a partial healer knew about it, wich means Lissa is also aware of this relationship. It seems unlikely that her handmaiden wouldn't notice anything strange with the behaviour of her lady unless she knows about it as well. Lissa is the only healer whose presence you allow when you need to be examined, and the only one that examined the Queen as well. In conclusion, you are pregnant with Chrom's child, but since you are not supposed to have a child and the Queen is, she's covering for you with the help of a healer that has both of your trust. Am I correct?"

Robin sighed heavily. "To the last point. You just missed Frederick."

"Ah, of course. I wasn't entirely sure if his help would be necessary, but it is probably welcomed. That would explain the fact that he seems to give Sully and Vaike twice as many tasks to do whenever any of them try to force you to train with them due to your recent muscle loss."

Robin grimaced when he heard that, remembering how insistent they were. The tactician himself tried to train even if he was sick, unless he got seriously hurt, so they had shrugged his cold off and told him he would feel better after training for a while. Robin had run out of excuses to avoid them and had to lock himself up in his room several times.

"Would you mind too much if I went to your room to hide sometimes? They're not as insistent since Frederick started stepping in, but…" Robin asked, without thinking.

"Of course. You could help me with my experiments, or continue your own work. But there is something I want to ask."

"Yes?"

"Why did you tell me? It looks like an unnecessary risk to me."

Robin sighed. "First of all, for the same reason I asked you to heal me with Lissa that first time:  _ I _ didn't tell you anything. You just thought about it for ten seconds and got everything right. I knew it was very possible you would end up realizing it on your own, and while I belive you would have talked to me first… Well, nobles here are very picky about blue blood, and I wanted to minimize risks."

"An understandable measure." Miriel nodded, pleased at his foresight.

"And also… you are my friend, Miriel. A great friend. I can't say I like hiding this from you. Hiding this from all the Shepherds… But I obviously can't just drop something like that when we're all living in a castle full of nobles, so I thought of doing this little by little. And since you're a great friend, extremely intelligent,  _ and  _ you can keep secrets,  you were my first step."

"I see…" She adjusted her glasses and frowned slightly, but smiled. Robin realized she was embarrassed. "Your words are certainly considerate. I did not expect you would find me such an exceptional confidant. I'm… honored."

Robin smiled at her. "Of course you are."

Miriel nodded. "In that case, feel free to bring your work here tomorrow. I will make sure both of us have enough space to work on our respective tasks."

"Thank you, Miriel. Really."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here's another one! I really enjoyed writing this one, despite (or because of?) being sick the morning I did it.


End file.
